Steve Coogan Quotes

When I see friends from school I think they've all grown old and I've stayed the same.

I did not become successful in my work through embracing or engaging in celebrity culture. I never signed away my privacy in exchange for success.

I have never wanted to be famous, as such - fame is a by-product.

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.

If you do something very successful, you will then be defined by it.

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.

People regurgitate the same old cliches and it becomes like a photocopy of a photocopy of something that's vaguely interesting.

If you chase something too desperately, it eludes you.

If you are a great dramatic actor then you often don't know if people are enjoying your stuff at all because they are sitting there in silence. But with comedy it's a simple premise. If it's funny, people laugh. If it's not, they don't.

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.

Actors say they do their own stunts for the integrity of the film but I did them because they looked like a lot of fun.

As soon as I see period costume, I turn off. It's like hearing drama on Radio 4.

If you start to disrespect the character you're playing, or play it too much for laughs, that can work for a sketch, it will sell some gags, but it's all technique. It's like watching a juggler - you can be impressed by it, but it's not going to touch you in any way.

I've always been drawn to discomfort and that limbo of unease you get between comedy and tragedy. Making people laugh one moment and the next making them feel really uncomfortable.

There is a strong ethical dimension to the best comedy.

Not only does it avoid reinforcing prejudices, it actively challenges them.