If you do something very successful, you will then be defined by it.
What I don’t like is dance music or hip hop or any of that sort of thing.
I use improvisation as a writing tool to help produce material that goes into a script, but a well-crafted script shouldn’t sound scripted, and oftentimes people confuse something that looks like improvisation for what is actually a very well-written script that is well-acted.
I like the transience of Klimt paintings.
Two thousand years ago, the Holy family had a ramble from Nazareth to Bethlehem – in much the same way as I’m having a ramble from Norwich to Swaffham. Although I’m not comparing myself to Jesus – I don’t want to get bogged down in that whole controversy again.
I love Sherlock Holmes. I’ve got all his books, leather-bound. What I thought was great about Sherlock Holmes was that not only was he a supersleuth, he was also a hard worker. Not only did he go out and solve the crimes, he came home and wrote it all down. Fantastic. That’s why I admire him.
I think if you try to look for something to show off as an actor, vanity can get the better of you.
I don’t think I’m kind of universally known. I think in the indie world I’m probably better known than in some mainstream Hollywood terms.
I always find it easier to portray myself as being unlikeable and idiotic; to actually play a character that is likeable and engages the audience is far more difficult. It’s a more subtle kind of challenge.
There is a strong ethical dimension to the best comedy. Not only does it avoid reinforcing prejudices, it actively challenges them.
I’m 47, my girlfriend’s 33; she’s 14 years younger than me, back of the net!
When I was a student I was very, very ambitious, completely immersed in my comedy career. I never had that period of reckless hedonism that you should get out of your system in your youth.
Got my fungal foot powder? Ah, it’s a lifesaver, you know. I’d effectively be disabled if it weren’t for these.
All those people who go around saying Life begins at forty, they’re notable by their absence. The nerve.
I woke with a start. At first I assumed I’d trumped myself awake again.
I’m a huge fan of Jack Lemmon, he was someone who managed to tread that line between comedy and tragedy and sometimes give very big performances, but they were never over-demonstrative and they were never not based on a kind of real truthful human being.
When you see a crowd of people jumping up and down at a pop concert, all gloriously in the moment, I don’t think you’ll ever see a comedian there. They’ll all be standing at the sides, looking at how it all fits together.
When I see friends from school I think they’ve all grown old and I’ve stayed the same.
I think it’s always funny when you see kids do Shakespeare. When I was at school, I was in Hamlet. I played Claudius, who’s supposed to be a 60-year-old man, and I was like 18. It’s inherently ridiculous seeing 18-year-old boys with gray beards. That’s always funny.
Actually the best thing I did was to get thrown out by my wife. She’s living with a fitness instructor. He drinks that yellow stuff in tins. He’s an idiot.