I have a theory about Ireland, being at the edge of Europe. For 1,000 years, people didnt know what was beyond. But we thought about it - a lot. And that beyond became internalized in our psyche.

I could not flourish in the Hollywood system because the first thing spoken about is "What genre is it?" and "Who's it for?" It's a very strange question to me; it's for human beings.

We're all ordinary in a way. We can all be hurt. We can all be unbalanced. We all have feelings. Life can treat us harshly, even shockingly sometimes.

The play is a very simple idea really; someone needs some support and consolation, and she finds a place where she gets it.

I guess Im attracted and repelled by isolation. It scares me. And its why I tend to write about older characters, too, because for them the stakes are somewhat higher.

Directing is such a crucial part of the writing process; you start directing and you see what does not work. "Oh, God, what was I thinking?" and then you can rearrange it.

I love stories that frame that: This is what life is about - you don't have a clue.

I think Catholicism took root very quickly in Ireland because it's a very superstitious religion, the holy ghost, the holy spirit, it has a goddess, very visual, the music.

We know so little of the why, what the universe is, what infinity is. The veil around us is very fragile.

I just want the actors to put their faith in the language. Just let the words do the work.

If I wasn't plagued by needing to write things, that would perhaps be a blessing.

To conceal an action is deceit. Even the husband is not aware of the deceit [by wife]. Lying is also deceit.

The opposite of talking isn't listening. The opposite of talking is waiting.

In God's world, for those who are in earnest, there is no failure. No work truly done, no word earnestly spoken, no sacrifice freely made, was ever made in vain.

At exhibition openings always praise the chicken for laying eggs; you can wring its neck later.

The majority of life on Earth is microbial

I'm not a big shorts person. Personally, I hate to see men's legs on the golf course.

I grew up on Don Knotts and Jerry Lewis and all the guys from Second City.

If you can fix a problem with money, it's not really a problem.

Specialization breeds biases that ultimately aggregate as international and ideological discord, which, in turn, leads to war.