Tim Pigott-Smith Quotes

Powerful Tim Pigott-Smith for Daily Growth

About Tim Pigott-Smith

Tim Pigott-Smith (1946 - 2017) was an accomplished British actor known for his versatile performances in stage, film, and television. Born on August 30, 1946, in London, England, he attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), where he graduated in 1968. His acting career spanned over five decades, leaving an indelible mark on British theater and screen. Pigott-Smith's early influences included iconic actors such as Laurence Olivier, Peter O'Toole, and Paul Scofield, whom he admired for their ability to embody complex characters with conviction. His professional breakthrough came in 1975 when he starred as Thomas More in A Man For All Seasons at the National Theatre. Throughout his career, Pigott-Smith worked extensively on stage, earning numerous awards and nominations for his performances. In 2016, he garnered critical acclaim for his portrayal of King George III in Peter Morgan's play, "The King's Speech," at the Wyndham's Theatre in London. On the small screen, Pigott-Smith was recognized for his roles in series like "Waking The Dead," "Casualty," and "Victoria." His notable film appearances include "Chariots of Fire" (1981), "Gandhi" (1982), and "The Dresser" (1983). Pigott-Smith's life was marked by a deep commitment to his craft. He once said, "Acting is an art and it should be pursued with the passion of someone in love." In 2017, he passed away from prostate cancer, leaving behind a rich body of work that continues to inspire actors today. His legacy endures as a testament to the power of performance and the transformative impact of great storytelling.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"The greatest gift a parent can give a child is the power of decision making."

This quote by Tim Pigot-Smith emphasizes the importance of empowering children with the ability to make decisions. By giving them the power of decision making, parents are equipping their children with crucial life skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, and self-reliance. These skills not only help children grow into independent individuals but also foster confidence, resilience, and responsibility. Ultimately, this gift can significantly contribute to a child's personal development and success in life.

"A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out."

This quote emphasizes the significance of genuine friendship, suggesting that a true friend stands by you even during challenging times, when others might choose to distance themselves or withdraw their support. It highlights the strength and reliability of authentic friendships, which provide emotional support and companionship when it matters most.

"Acting should be about truth and honesty. It's not about how big your name is or how famous you are."

This quote by Tim Pigott-Smith emphasizes that genuine acting relies on authenticity and sincerity rather than fame or personal recognition. He suggests that the essence of acting lies in portraying truth and honesty, rather than focusing on one's reputation or status within the industry. In essence, his words underscore the importance of staying true to the character being played and not getting lost in the glamour and glitz associated with fame.

"I don't want to be remembered as a great actor, just as a good one."

Tim Pigott-Smith's quote indicates his humility and dedication to consistently delivering quality performances rather than seeking grandiose recognition or fame. He aims for excellence in his craft, focusing on the journey of becoming a "good" actor, rather than striving to be classified as "great," which might suggest an unattainable or elusive status. This mindset allows him to appreciate each role and experience without being overly preoccupied with accolades or legacy.

"There's no such thing as normal life. There's just life."

Tim Pigott-Smith's quote emphasizes that there is no standard or idealized version of life, but rather, there is only the unique experiences and journeys we all embark on. It encourages us to accept and embrace our individual lives for what they are - diverse, complex, and ever-changing. In other words, we should celebrate the uniqueness of our personal narratives and understand that everyone's story is valuable in its own right.

I like songs to mean something as well as sound good, and Paul Simon is a maestro. While Art Garfunkel was a voice and moved on to other things Simon remained the genius lyricist and composer.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Art, Voice, Other, None

The Almeida's artistic director, Rupert Goold, brought me Mike Bartlett's 'King Charles III' with the slightly apologetic warning that it was in blank verse, but, of course, that appealed to me.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Blank, Slightly, Apologetic, III

My parents were fantastic. I was an only child, so I had a lot of love and too much attention. I don't think I was spoilt. My mother was quite a disciplinarian, but I did have a lot of attention and quite a lot of pressure to do well at whatever I was doing.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Love, Doing, Had, Fantastic

Everybody wants a movie career. I found that pretty elusive. I did make a movie with Martin Sheen about a nuclear scientist who has a religious experience. I don't even know what it was called. I don't think it was ever released.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Career, Everybody, Religious, Religious Experience

The worst nickname I ever had was Tim Pig-ears-Smith. I had big ears. When I was younger, it was more pronounced. So I felt huge sympathy towards Prince Charles over that.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Big, Over, Younger, None

I have only met Prince Charles once, when he was very charming and easy to chat to. I have always had a soft spot for him, and I admire our constitutional monarchy, but Charles often comes across as eccentric, and he has a mixed press.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Admire, Very, Constitutional, None

It's not legally possible to put an image of a member of the royal family on the Tube!

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Image, Tube, Legally, Royal Family

People are fed up with broadcasters pushing the boundaries too far.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Far, Fed, Too, Broadcasters

My first arrival in India was memorable - landing at Delhi airport at 2 A.M. to start filming 'The Jewel in the Crown' in the Eighties. The man who was supposed to pick me up wasn't there, so I spent a very uncomfortable three hours phoning around hotels to find out where I was supposed to be. It was a major culture shock, but I adored India.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Arrival, Very, Jewel, Delhi

Villains are always the best roles, but that meant that for months afterwards, all I got offered were absolute cads and bounders and really nasty pieces of work, as well as a lot of people who only had one arm. Such is the limited imaginative power, you see, of a great many casting directors.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Villains, Directors, Roles, Casting Directors

You had to be there at the time to understand the wild creative energy of the Fab Four, and this contains forays into Indian music as well as classics such as 'When I'm Sixty-Four.'

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Understand, Classics, Had, Indian Music

Of course there is a danger of typecasting, and since 'Jewel in the Crown' appeared, I have had countless offers to play sadistic policemen and middle-class misfits.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Play, Middle-Class, Offers, Policemen

Perhaps it's an accident of nationality, but the English treasure subtlety and appreciate not having everything spelled out for them, while Americans want everything made apparent.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Subtlety, Made, Having, Apparent

For sheer excitement, a weekend in New York is unbeatable. Arrive on Friday morning, leave on Monday night, and don't worry about jet lag - just buzz for four days.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Worry, New, Weekend, Friday

After 'Jewel In the Crown,' I hardly worked at all for about six months - which came as a bit of a surprise, I have to admit.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Surprise, Six, Which, Hardly

When I have a good performance, I'm wrecked at the end of it. I feel completely empty, and tears are pouring down my face - I'm just gone.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Tears, Feel, I Feel, Pouring

I didn't like my first primary school in Leicester very much. As I was going home on my tricycle one day, I said, 'There's no reading, no writing and no arithmetic - it's really boring!' So I was sent to St John the Baptist Church of England Primary.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Church, One Day, Very, Primary

My wife is a fantastic traveller. She's good fun and very optimistic. Even if things get bad, she's good at seeing the light side.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Bad, Very, Side, Traveller

You normally either get bitten by a character and decide that is the way to play it, and then that begins to inform everything you do, or you decide, 'I don't need to use much character in this - I have basically got to be me'.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Play, Need, Inform, Normally

By early 1971, I had been acting professionally for 18 months - theatre work and my first telly, an episode of 'Dr. Who.'

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Work, Been, Months, Telly

When you've won the war, you're faced with the problem of winning the peace.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Winning, Problem, Won, Faced

I love Stevie Wonder for his sense of rapture in the music. He can swing through a zappy tune, lift your heart, or drift into a sad ballad with consummate ease.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Love, Through, Stevie, Ballad

When I grew up, in the time of 'Look Back in Anger,' the theatre was very exciting, a place where you felt that social comment could lead to social change.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Social Change, Social, Very, Comment

What a wonderful life I've had - absolutely amazing.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Amazing, Absolutely, Wonderful Life

Slower television actually credits the audience with a higher level of intelligence.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Audience, Level, Actually, Credits

When 'Jewel' was screened, old friends from school and university got back in touch. More than one of them told me that their partners hated Merrick so much they could not think of having me in the house. This kind of audience identification does not happen in any other medium.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

University, Other, Jewel, Identification

I was really uncomfortable with fame. I mean, it's lovely and flattering, and you enjoy all the razzmatazz and being flown around, but when people suddenly call you a star, you think, 'I'm not a star, I'm just playing a star role.'

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Enjoy, Role, Around, Flown

In England, anybody who was alive remembers an interview between the press and Charles and Diana, right after they became engaged. One of the press asked Charles if he loved her. And he said, 'Oh, well, whatever love means.' Boy, it was a terrible answer.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Love, Engaged, Became, Interview

I always remember to go on the Staten Island Ferry because it's the most amazing view of New York. And it's free! You see Ellis Island, and it conjures up something of that great moment: you know, the huddled masses yearning to breathe free. It's staggering.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Moment, Most Amazing, Ellis, Staggering

You never learn to act in front of a camera. You never learn anything in front of a camera. But you learn to act in a rehearsal room with a good play and a good cast and a good director.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Play, Learn, Rehearsal, Camera

As a child, we lived in flats, and I was never allowed pets.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Never, Pets, Allowed, Flats

If you can't educate your citizens and you can't keep them healthy, you can't begin to be a society.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Society, Healthy, Keep, Educate

I earn a lot of money in England doing voice-overs, especially in documentaries. Turn on the Discovery Channel here, and you'll hear my voice a lot. It subsidizes my vice of acting in the theater.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Voice, England, Here, Documentaries

I would say that the money that was invested in me by Warwickshire Education Authority, which they did for five years, has been repaid a hundred times over. I have paid a lot more back to them in tax than they paid in support to me, but they helped me on my way - they launched me; they got me going.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Education, Been, Hundred, Invested

The 'reality' shows on television, the Internet, these things have encouraged people to behave with less and less restraint. We are broadcasting our emotions in public in a way that has never happened before.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Emotions, Television, Before, Restraint

What makes Biarritz special, as far as I'm concerned, are the fantastic coastline, the beaches - such as the Cotes des Basques - and the sea.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Sea, Concerned, Makes, Coastline

You wouldn't read 'Anna Karenina' and try to work on the computer at the same time, would you?

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Computer, Same, Read, Anna

When I was 16, we moved to live in Stratford-Upon-Avon. That was the year of Paul Scofield's 'Lear.' I think he is still widely perceived as the only actor who has got his flag at the top of the mountain.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Think, I Think, Still, Lear

I'm quite sharp but not particularly academic.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Academic, Particularly, Sharp

I like jazz, and Martin Taylor and his band have it all, including a wonderful saxophonist and very fine accordionist, so you get a rather unusual range of sound.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Very, Including, Taylor, Unusual

I'm not a big fan of the Mediterranean, but being in the Bay of Biscay, the sea is forever changing, and on a clear day, you see as far as Spain. It's incomparable.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Big, Clear, Spain, As Far As

Understand me, Hollywood miniseries are very popular in England. But British miniseries make a tremendous mark on the national consciousness. They become part of the national culture and mythology... at least for a time.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

England, Hollywood, Very, Popular

Occasionally, there are programmes - like 'The Office' or 'Gavin and Stacey,' perhaps - where you get the feeling everybody's seen it.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Like, Everybody, Programmes, Occasionally

I never wanted to do film. I don't have the right face, and I don't like stardom. I like the fact that I have this wonderful thing that gives you status, but I'm most interested in doing decent work.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Doing, Fact, Like, Status

Hollywood's best producers and directors are in film, not TV.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Hollywood, TV, Directors, Producers

Your response to literature is to do with maturity; if you don't respond to a book or a poem when you are 12, you might when you are 13.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Book, Maturity, Might, Respond

I especially like the Padstow area and the south coast near Portloe. It's lovely, though I do wish it was a bit closer to London.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

London, Lovely, Area, Near

People wrote about me and started calling me a star, and I just hated it. There are aspects of it that are great - I mean, you can ring up any restaurant and get in, can't you.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Star, Ring, Wrote, Hated

Sometimes I Rollerblade to work, but it's most lovely in the park, and it's really quite safe there. I do it quite carefully, and I wear all the gear.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Work, Lovely, Carefully, Park

I've played quite a lot of real people, and it carries a special responsibility.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Special, Real People, Lot, Carries

American writers reduce the length of time devoted to exposition and character development.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Character, Reduce, Devoted, Exposition

I adore Biarritz. I first went there in the Eighties, and my wife and I liked it so much that we ended up buying a holiday home there.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Wife, Holiday, Liked, Eighties

There is something about the way I photograph. People often say, 'Are you cross with me?' My eyes can look sort of... like a wall.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Like, Cross, About, Wall

When I get thinking, I get very knotted up. I chew things over a lot and take things quite seriously.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Seriously, Over, Very, Chew

In television, I was first cast as a cavalry officer because of my name.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Television, Cast, Officer, Cavalry

I seem to get cast as one of two extremes. Either I play the butch heavy or totally nice guys.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Play, Two, Extremes, Heavy

America is very generous, but it's also a bit wacky, you know.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Know, Very, Also, Generous

Fame changed my life completely because, for a while, I was in a position to choose what I did. I miss that aspect. But I always felt uncomfortable with it.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

My Life, Always, Felt, Miss

Drama at Bristol was an academic course: you were judged on your A-levels, and there were no auditions. I did a BA General degree.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Degree, Your, Auditions, Judged

After a West End run, in which I was promoted to Laertes, I joined the RSC in 1972. I had fulfilled my dream.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Which, Joined, Fulfilled, Promoted

Performing King Charles in Mike Bartlett's astonishing play in London and New York has been one of the high points of my career.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Play, New, Been, Points

When you're in a good play and a good production, you find that you're in something that has a life beyond you. You think, 'Oh my goodness, this play's alive.'

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Play, Think, Alive, Goodness

'Jewel in the Crown' is the biggest exposure I've ever had on television.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Exposure, Ever, Biggest, Crown

I can't understand why TV tries to appeal to youth.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Understand, TV, Tries, Appeal

One of the functions of drama is to teach.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Teach, Functions, Drama

My memory is quite good, except when I'm off stage.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Stage, Quite, Except, Memory

I used to think the actor's job was immersing himself completely in another personality.

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Think, Actor, Himself, Personality

You can't keep a hero down, can you?

- Tim Pigott-Smith

Down, You, Keep, Hero

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