I was a modest, good-humoured boy. It is Oxford that has made me insufferable.

The critic who justly admires all kinds of things simultaneously cannot love any one of them.

Improvisation is the essence of good talk. Heaven defend us from the talker who doles out things prepared for us; but let heaven not less defend us from the beautiful spontaneous writer who puts his trust in the inspiration of the moment.

To give and then not feel that one has given is the very best of all ways of giving.

What a lurid life Oscar Wilde does lead - so full of extraordinary incidents. What a chance for the memoir writers of the next century

I believe the twenty-four hour day has come to stay.

Fate weaves the darkness, which is perhaps why she weaves so badly.