The architect who first inspired me to follow this profession was Sir John Soane and his Regency home; well, his three homes, now a museum. The place is like an encyclopedia of paintings, antiquities, furniture, sculptures, and drawings.
I can read Middle English stories, Geoffrey Chaucer or Sir Thomas Malory, but once I start moving in the direction of contemporary fantasy, my mind begins to take over.
My breakthrough as a reader was when I discovered the European adventure story writers – Alexander Dumas, Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir Walter Scott, to name a few.
In America, people come up to me and say, ‘Hi, Sir Humph!’
When you work with Sir Anthony there are days when he will do a lot of takes if he’s really enjoying a scene.
Rahman sir keeps pushing himself. He keeps trying new things, whether it is his craft, music or sound… he is always learning. He looks for opportunities to learn, even from children.
When I did a scene with Dharam sir for the first time, I actually cried!
It’s always been that I feel more masculine in drag than I do out of it. I only get called ‘ma’am’ out of drag and I only get called ‘sir’ in drag.
It may not be proper for me, perhaps, to let my feelings carry me further am therefore resigned to stop here, if sir, you think my particular reasons following too free, or will give offense to the House, which I would be sorry to be thought capable of intending.
Winston Churchill was not entirely British. His mother was American, making Sir Winston part Iroquois Indian.
There is no need to worry about mere size. We do not necessarily respect a fat man more than a thin man. Sir Isaac Newton was very much smaller than a hippopotamus, but we do not on that account value him less.
Sir Larry could be very strict and a disciplinarian, too. He had many faces; he wore many hats. But, ultimately, he loved the theater and he loved actors.
I will make sure I will not go in the wrong path. I will get experience playing in IPL. I will talk with Ricky Ponting sir, Pravin Amre sir, and all the other support staff. I will enjoy over there.
Importantly, Rajini sir doesn’t take his fans and audiences for granted.
Working with my friend Sir Antony Sher is truly one of the highlights of my career as an artist.
If someone comes to me with a script and says, ‘Sir, this hero…’ I’m like, ‘Is there a name, or he is just called a hero?’ We are not heroes. Heroes are people fighting for us at the border. We are not heroes; we are just doing our job.
During the Sir Alex Ferguson years, you would see all those great players – Roy Keane, Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Jaap Stam, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Cristiano Ronaldo, to name just a few – and you’d quickly realise why Old Trafford had an aura like nowhere else.
For anyone to say that WWE is fake or anything like that, no sir! It’s very physical, and the injuries are real; the blood is real.
People ask, ‘Should I call you Sir Hopkins?’ But I say, ‘No. Call me Tony,’ because it’s too much of a lift-up.
I have seen humility in many of the finest leaders I have met the world over. And indeed, it is embodied in the warm, engaging and quintessentially successful spirit of Sir Richard Branson.
Every time I meet Rahman sir, it’s a fan moment for me. I don’t take the fact that I am working with him lightly. I get excited every time I see and work with him. But I don’t embarrass him.
Sir Alex Ferguson must be very high up on the list of greatest managers ever. Then there is Fabio Capello, and people forget how much Giovanni Trapattoni achieved at Inter and especially Juventus.
