You can spend a lifetime, and, if you're honest with yourself, never once was your work perfect.

I am very proud of the fact that I led the arts contingent on the civil rights march in the summer of '63. In many ways, I think it was the high-water mark of the civil rights movement.

I always work on the theory that the audience will believe you best if you believe yourself.

It's the camel's nose in the tent. Look at Stalin, Mussolini, Hitler, Mao Zedong, Pol Pot, Idi Amin - every one of these monsters, on seizing power, their first act was to confiscate all firearms in private hands.

The Internet is for lonely people. People should live.

In terms of pure physical effort, today was probably as hard as I've worked in any part. I spent the morning rowing, including the change of speeds Arrius [the Roman commander] test Judah with. A real bone-breaker.

Society mends its wounds. And that's invariably true in all the tragedies, in the comedies as well. And certainly in the histories.