Laura Wade Quotes

Powerful Laura Wade for Daily Growth

About Laura Wade

Laura Wade (b. 1978) is a prominent British playwright, screenwriter, and television director, renowned for her insightful and thought-provoking dramas that often explore contemporary social issues. Born in London, Wade was educated at St Paul's Girls' School and later the University of Cambridge. She initially pursued a career as an actress before transitioning to writing due to a lack of roles that appealed to her. Her journey into playwriting began with her critically acclaimed debut, 'Posh' (2010), which delves into the dark underbelly of elite society through a tale of Cambridge University alumni. Wade's second play, 'The Mountain Stage' (2013), revolves around the aftermath of an on-stage suicide at a prestigious theatre and was nominated for multiple Olivier Awards. Her television work includes adapting Anthony Trollope's 'Can You Forgive Her?' (2016) for BBC and writing the critically acclaimed HBO series, 'The Handmaid's Tale' (2017-present), for which she earned an Emmy Award nomination. In 2020, Wade wrote 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child', a play continuing J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter saga, with Jack Thorne and John Tiffany. The play was a commercial success, winning multiple Olivier Awards and Tony Awards. Throughout her career, Wade has demonstrated a keen eye for the complexities of human nature and a unique ability to tackle heavy themes with sensitivity and wit. Her work continues to resonate with audiences worldwide, solidifying her position as a significant voice in contemporary drama.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"We live in a world where everyone is expected to have an opinion on everything."

This quote by Laura Wade highlights the cultural norm of expressing opinions on various topics, often regardless of one's level of knowledge or personal interest. It suggests that in today's society, individuals are pressured into forming and sharing their views about a wide range of issues, both personal and political, which can sometimes lead to shallow discourse or lack of thoughtful consideration. The quote underscores the need for careful reflection before expressing opinions, fostering deeper conversations, and promoting genuine understanding among people.


"What we don't do can define us as much as what we do."

This quote underscores that our choices, both in action and inaction, significantly contribute to defining who we are as individuals. While we often focus on the things we actively pursue or accomplish, the choices we make not to engage, learn, experience, or change can also shape us profoundly. The lessons learned from both actions and non-actions collectively form our character, values, and beliefs, making them equally crucial in understanding one's identity.


"Life is too short for small talk and unrequited love."

This quote by Laura Wade suggests that life is valuable and should not be wasted on trivial conversations or pursuing affection that is not reciprocated. Instead, it encourages focusing on meaningful connections and experiences that enrich one's life. In essence, the quote underscores the importance of living authentically and purposefully in our interactions with others.


"Humans have an extraordinary capacity for self-delusion, especially when it comes to our own goodness."

This quote underscores the human tendency to overestimate our virtues and ignore our flaws. It highlights that people often have a biased perception of themselves, tending to view their actions through a lens of self-justification rather than objectively evaluating their behavior. The quote serves as a reminder that understanding ourselves truthfully is essential for personal growth and improvement.


"The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there."

This quote suggests that our understanding of the past, especially when looking back from a contemporary perspective, is like viewing another culture (a "foreign country"). The customs, values, beliefs, and behaviors we see in the past may seem alien to us, as they are products of different historical, social, and political contexts. It's a reminder that understanding history requires an open mind, empathy, and a willingness to view events from another era's perspective.


Writing a tribe is fun. They have their own language, their own slang; they repeat it, and it becomes part of the texture of the play. For a writer, that's thrilling. That's when my pen flies.

- Laura Wade

Play, Flies, Slang, Thrilling

Your plays are always personal. You can't help seeing yourself in the serial killer you've just written. But they get less specifically personal.

- Laura Wade

Personal, Always, Plays, Specifically

If you want, you can have a coffin made out of cardboard or wicker or papier mache. There's one like a seed pod, or you could buy one that doubles as both a bookcase and a coffin. During your life, you stand it in your living room, and then after you die, the books are taken out and your body put in their place and the whole thing buried.

- Laura Wade

Seed, Die, Buy, Doubles

I'm not posh at all. I grew up in Sheffield but never managed to pick up the accent - which was careless because there'd be some cache now in being a northern playwright, but I missed out on that one.

- Laura Wade

Some, Posh, Which, Careless

Quite often, little germs of ideas have come from something that I've observed or someone's told me. The process of it becoming fiction is expanding and extending it: stretching the rubber band of reality.

- Laura Wade

Process, Becoming, Expanding, Observed

I think it's disingenuous to believe that being born into a privileged world means you feel like you are having an easy time.

- Laura Wade

Think, I Think, Means, Disingenuous

It's an odd mix, the life of a playwright.

- Laura Wade

Life, Playwright, Odd, Mix

I was the family alien. Both my parents are quite creative, but I was... appalling... always putting on little shows. I was rather a shy child, not a natural performer, but there was a performative edge to everything I did.

- Laura Wade

Always, Both My Parents, Appalling

I think a lot of playwrights have a script in their bottom drawer that hopefully no one will ever see about a bunch of young people sharing a flat and getting up to crazy stuff.

- Laura Wade

Young, I Think, About, Drawer

Old Etonians are the most charming people in the world. It's not just the analytic ability and the great education; there is a really easy confidence to them that draws people to them and makes their passage though the world a little easier.

- Laura Wade

Education, Passage, Though, Draws

In my final year at Bristol University, I wrote a play called 'White Feathers.' It was produced in the studio theatre at the students' union in early 1999, when I was 21. It's 100 pages long: a very traditional play, with an interval, about deserters in the First World War.

- Laura Wade

Play, Studio, Very, Produced

Whether you like the look or not, that tailcoat is a tough shell, a suit of armour. The posh boy is a hardy species.

- Laura Wade

Like, Posh, Hardy, Shell

I am interested in the way advances in medicine and palliative care mean more people now have the opportunity to plan their own deaths, and also plan for those who are left behind. What does that do to the grieving process?

- Laura Wade

Behind, Own, Advances, Grieving

I'm always drawn to writing things that feel like uncharted territory.

- Laura Wade

Writing, Always, Like, Uncharted

'Posh' is not really political. I didn't want to aim a brickbat at the system. Or to bash Old Etonians. It was always the class and privilege aspect of that world that I was most drawn to. There is something endlessly fascinating about imagining something you could never be involved in.

- Laura Wade

Aim, About, Endlessly, Bash

A fascinating breed, Old Etonians. Impeccable in their social skills and very portable - you can put them anywhere, and they are absolutely charming.

- Laura Wade

Old, Social, Very, Breed

And I admit it: there's a rather dirty thrill when 700 people laugh at a joke you've written.

- Laura Wade

Dirty, Thrill, Rather, Joke

I think we love watching rich people behave badly. It has a sort of grisly fascination for us.

- Laura Wade

Love, Think, Badly, Rich People

I really don't know where my interest in death comes from. Maybe I've just got a twisted imagination. The truth is, I haven't had a hugely eventful life - maybe I'm compensating in my creative life. Or maybe I'm just a bit sick.

- Laura Wade

Death, Maybe, Had, Creative Life

Maybe if I'd had more direct contact with death, I wouldn't find it so fascinating and I wouldn't write about it so much.

- Laura Wade

Death, More, Maybe, Contact

It's very lucky to be able to do a job where I get to sit about writing plays all day and going to the theatre. The downside, I suppose, is that you put it out there, and people are invited to like it or loathe it.

- Laura Wade

Lucky, Very, About, Suppose

I think the interesting thing about the word 'posh' is that it is so relative; it's quite a provocative title because people have strong feelings about that word.

- Laura Wade

Think, Provocative, Posh, Title

I think theatre at its best looks into the dark corners; clearly, my dark corners are full of doom.

- Laura Wade

Best, Think, I Think, Doom

Apparently the show happens even if I'm not there. Who knew?

- Laura Wade

Show, Knew, Even, Apparently

It's not a meritocracy until everyone starts with the same opportunities, is it?

- Laura Wade

Everyone, Same, Until, Starts

I'm not very good at sticking at things if I can't be successful at them. I gave up on sport a long time ago.

- Laura Wade

Very, Them, Long Time Ago, Sticking

I don't like writing with real people in mind.

- Laura Wade

Writing, Mind, Like, Real People

We're not going to create a more equal society by not prodding at it, are we?

- Laura Wade

Society, More, Going, Equal

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