It is no more the function of government to impose a moral code than to impose a religious code. And for the same reason.

The virtue of democracy is that is has placed limits on the absoluteness of power.

The Greatest evils inflicted by man over the face of the Earth are wrought not by the self-seekers, the pleasure lovers, or the merely amoral, but by the fervent devotees of ethical principles.

The healthy being craves an occasional wildness, a jolt from normality, a sharpening of the edge of appetite, his own little festival of Saturnalia, a brief excursion from his way of life.

Disequilibrium is often instigated by the will to power, a sleepless drive in the human personality to control others, to force them to do what one wants, or not to do what one opposes.

The essence of communication is intention.

Your internal thoughts determine your outer world.

Oh yeah, gossip. I heard you on the secret wireless. You know the devil's radio child.

The pleasures of the intellect are permanent, the pleasures of the heart are transitory.

Truth lifts the heart, like water refreshes thirst.

The man who does something under orders is not unhappy; he is unhappy who does something against his will.

I'm sure they didn't notice anything but you. You should wear flames more often," he says. "They suit you.

I once worked with Emma Thompsons mother, Phyllida Law. I worked with her on a BBC drama, and she was hilarious. I loved her so much, and she was great to work with.

Turnarounds seldom turn.