Of all human activities, writing is the one for which it is easiest to find excuses not to begin – the desk’s too big, the desk’s too small, there’s too much noise, there’s too much quiet, it’s too hot, too cold, too early, too late. I had learned over the years to ignore them all, and simply to start.

I think it's very, very hard not to go slightly crazy if you're in the top in politics, especially if you're there for a long time.

A police state is a country run by criminals

In a way I'm almost more rueful about the notion of having a non-ideological Labour party than I am about the personality of Tony Blair.

If long hitting is the thing that causes the spectators to whistle through their teeth in wonderment, why not play tournaments up and down an expansive stadium?

Working 14 hours a day until you're 55 and missing your kids growing up is not what I would consider a recipe for happiness.

You can always spot a fool, for he is a man who will tell you he knows who is going to win an election.