Lara Pulver (about Irene Adler being gay) : It’s so weird because I didn’t like to label her. Yes, she says, “I’m gay.” But what is she actually saying? “I meet people and I fall in love with them and they happen to be of the same sex?” I don’t know. I’ve literally just seen the interview with Barack Obama backing gay marriage and I’m thinking, we’re in 2012, what’s the big deal? People fall in love and I think more harm is done from suppressing your true identity than being given the freedom to just be. So I never felt like I was hugely flying the flag for gay rights or trying to be this iconic gay figure in any way because what’s being gay? It’s just a label, isn’t it? Because, at the end of the day, I think she had feelings for Sherlock. So then people say, “Well, so she’s obviously not gay. She must be bisexual.” But actually, let’s not label this. Let’s just know that human beings fall for other human beings. I think I’m a bit of an anti-labellist, if there’s such a phrase.