Feelgood factor: Scorpio

"Most people exercise to relax, but for me it's a job. Other people go to the office, I go to the gym. So to unwind, I run a huge bubble bath and have an old-fashioned soak.

I do something called 'layering' - when you cover yourself in cream and potions and you're supposed to waft around in the smell of their perfume. Jean Paul Gaultier's stuff is really terrific - the cream is beautiful and really thick. I come from the Isle of Man, where the water is really soft, so I find London water makes my skin very dry and I need to use a lot of moisturiser and oils. I pour his bubble bath and gel into the water. I sit down and drink a cup of coffee while the water is running.

Usually I read while I'm having a good soak. I'm a real nutter about science fantasy novels.I never spend that long, rarely more than 15 minutes or so, before I get out. Then I rub down with a huge bath towel, cover myself in moisturiser and wrap myself in a bathrobe. I pamper myself.

If I'm feeling really self-indulgent, I put on some Gaultier perfume. Then I curl up in my robe and get on with some serious letter writing."

Interview by NICK WALKER

Niki Diamond is the Gladiator 'Scorpio'. She will be working in her first film, 'The Ring and the Seal', later this year.