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Noel Coward Quotes

Noël Coward
  • Mini Bio
  • Name: Noël Peirce Coward
  • Born: 16th December 1899, Teddington, Middlesex, England, UK
  • Died: 26th March 1973, Blue Harbor, Jamaica
  • Resting place: Firefly Estate, Montego Bay, Saint James, Jamaica
  • Alma mater: Chapel Royal School
  • Occupation: Playwright, composer and actor
  • Major awards: Winner of the 1943 Academy Award for his outstanding production achievement for the 1942 movie "In Which We Serve"
  • Honours: In 1969 he was knighted by the Queen at Buckingham Palace and bestowed the honour knight of the realm and thenceforth to be addressed as "Sir Noël Coward"
  • Nickname: The Master
  • Height: 6' (1.83 m)
  • Trivia: His flamboyant lifestyle caught up with him in the 1950's and he became one of the first British tax exiles to avoid what he deemed a crippling financial burden, he was later to become the first tax exile to be knighted

"It is discouraging how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit"

Noel Coward

"Hollywood is a place where some people lie on the beach and look up at the stars, whereas other people lie on the stars and look down at the beach"

Noel Coward

"People are wrong when they say that the opera isn't what it used to be. It is what it used to be - that's what's wrong with it"

Noel Coward

"The modern actress needs only to look good and master three essential skills, to cry, scream and fake orgasm on demand"

Noel Coward

"If the policy of His Majesty's Government is to bore the Germans to death I don't think we have time"

Noel Coward

"If anyone had told me at that time I was high up on the Nazi blacklist, I should have laughed"

Noel Coward

"She should have been sculpted in chocolate truffles so that the world could devour her"

Noel Coward

"The two most beautiful things in the world are Ivor Novello's profile and my mind"

Noel Coward

"Wit ought to be a glorious treat like caviar; never spread it about like marmalade"

Noel Coward

"Grab every scrap of happiness while you can"

Noel Coward

"I'm not a heavy drinker, I can sometimes go for hours without touching a drop"

Noel Coward

"A perfect martini should be made by filling a glass with gin then waving it in the general direction of Italy"

Noel Coward

"Trust your instincts. If you have no instincts, trust your impulses"

Noel Coward

"I don't believe in astrology. The only stars I can blame for my failures are those that walk about the stage"

Noel Coward

"I'll go through life either first class or third, but never in second"

Noel Coward

"Wouldn't it be dreadful to live in a country where they didn't have tea?"

Noel Coward

"The higher the building the lower the morals"

Noel Coward

"Marriage is the aftermath of love"

Noel Coward

"Certain women should be struck regularly, like gongs"

Noel Coward

"Television is for appearing on, not looking at"

Noel Coward
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Noel Coward Biography

Noel Coward was the epitome of how the English gentleman reflected life with understated observations that drew on the irony of everyday situations that all could relate to. His witticism's, both droll and sanguine, were oft delivered straight faced or smirking and always to the amusement of those in attendance.

The works of Noel Coward could be taken straight from his tongue as you could sense his "self" in all his characters. In real life he was just as witty as the lines his thespians played out on stage and his elegant sophistication bore all the airs and graces of the well heeled flamboyant characters he created.

In his prime his plays were considered cutting edge as he took on the taboo subjects of drugs and sex and got away with it by giving his often vain and neurotic characters wonderful expressions with which to articulate amusement to the audience. He was a master of subtlety with his duplicitous characters engaging in the subterfuge of the acceptable whilst delighting in the meaning of the squalid.

For two decades between the great wars he could do no wrong and was the darling of both London's West End and New York's Broadway. It was not just his skill as a playwright that earned him accolades as he was also a fine actor, director and lyricist who gave the world such endearing melodies as "Mad About The Boy", "I'll See You Again", "Someday I'll, Find You" and "Mad Dogs And Englishmen".

Taking his accomplishments in his inimitable understated stride Noel Coward was quoted as saying: "Success took me to her bosom like a maternal boa constrictor". Being the consummate actor his skills were used as a British spy during WW2 and yet during these years of turmoil due to war he still produced one of the most endearing romantic dramas of all time with the 1945 movie "Brief Encounter". He was a polymath who used his well honed skills in the sphere of creativity to bring an enlightened amusement to a world full of pain.

As a wordsmith he was as quick with a quip as you would flick with a whip and he could give his one liners great meaning, so this is my compilation of 20 of the best Noel Coward quotes

Quotes About Noel Coward

The impresario Florenz Ziegfeld was impressed to say: "The theatre cannot die as long as I have a genius like you"

Biographer Philip Hoare commented on him sailing close to the wind: "Coward is a man who wrote about drug abuse, women taking younger lovers, who wrote about sexuality. His plays were openly challenging the status quo of the '20s and '30s"

The playwright Brad Rosenstein opined to say: "Coward’s plays have survived because there’s so much of the truth, so much of himself in them"

The lyricist Tim Rice spoke admirably of his songlist: "The wit and wisdom of Noël Coward's lyrics will be as lively and contemporary in 100 years' time as they are today"


Noel Coward quote