One constant among the elements of 1914—as of any era—was the disposition of everyone on all sides not to prepare for the harder alternative, not to act upon what they suspected to be true.

War is the unfolding of miscalculations.

The nastiness of women [in the 14th century] was generally perceived at the close of life when a man began to worry about hell, and his sexual desire in any case fading.

To put on the garment of legitimacy is the first aim of every coup.

More than a code of manners in war and love, Chivalry was a moral system, governing the whole of noble life.

Strong prejudices in an ill-formed mind are hazardous to government, and when combined with a position of power even more so.

The fleet sailed to its war base in the North Sea, headed not so much for some rendezvous with glory as for rendezvous with discretion.

What his imagination is to the poet, facts are to the historian. His exercise of judgment comes in their selection, his art in their arrangement.

Business, like a jackal, trotted on the heels of war.

One must stop conducting research before one has finished. Otherwise, one will never stop and never finish.

Diplomacy means all the wicked devices of the Old World, spheres of influence, balances of power, secret treaties, triple alliances, and, during the interim period, appeasement of Fascism.

If life is a game... I need new dice!

Also, I'd like to play an athlete again, while I'm still physically fit, or a musician, like Nat King Cole, because I play the trumpet and sing. I'd like to incorporate that into a character.

I think escapism is very important, certainly in my life. I love nothing more than escaping into the world of a film or a novel. To be involved in creating that for other people is a privilege.

Illy [Ray Illingworth] had the man-management skills of Basil Fawlty

I'm not perfect; no one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes. I think you try to learn from those mistakes.

Not if Their Party were waiting, Not if to talk with Me Were to Them now, Homesickness After Eternity.

We believe in healthy, hearty laughter -- at the expense of the whole human race, if needs be. Needs be.

After a hit show is over, you soon realize this is a very tough business ... brutally tough. But I'm a better actor and I have more gravitas than I had at 24 with bleached-blonde hair.

I gotta pound the keys for the ideas to flow.

There are a lot of considerations that come into play when you craft one of these 'Saw' scripts, and there's only so much you can put into them.