“[Merchant says he'd like to see them have a go at drama.] In five years' time, ... the only place I want to be is in a room with Steve Merchant, working on a new project.”
“I don't know. I suppose I grew up wishing I was an American Jew for the comedy and the one-liners. 'The Sunshine Boys' is one of my favorite films And maybe a bit of liberation, knowing that if I said it in American people would know what I meant. So I was trying on my language skills.”
“No one grows up saying 'I hope I work in an office one day?' And that fascinated me. People from 16 to 65 are just thrown together and that is a tantalizing mix,”
“That's exactly what it did on BBC2. The people that get onto focus groups are force-fed big, broad comedies with laughter tracks and guest appearances. They're not going to like 'The Office' the first time they see it because they're not going to know what they're watching exactly. But if you stick to your vision and auteur it the way you think it should be done, there are enough people in the world that are like-minded and they're going to find it and it's going to be their favorite show.”
