There are some amazing stories from all over this country, where people’s work and contribution has been acknowledged. To be part of that is an absolutely fantastic feeling. – Kenneth Branagh
Sir Derek Jacobi has been an inspiration to so many actors and audiences throughout his brilliant career. To see him in Shakespeare is an event in itself. – Kenneth Branagh
I was stuck in a wheelchair playing this deranged villain. I felt this mass amount of rage at being so confined. I thought, ‘What can I do that is the direct opposite of this situation?’ The only thing I could think of was that I could sing and dance. – Kenneth Branagh
What I’ve found about ‘Cinderella’ is that what it provokes in an audience is really extraordinary. It appears to be a deceptively simple tale, but I’ve heard nothing but people drawing all different things out of it. – Kenneth Branagh
My dad, for the first 15 years of my career, on every visit he made to a play or a film set, would find the oldest person on set and say, ‘Do you think my son has a future?’ – Kenneth Branagh
Sometimes I used to think to myself, ‘Have I lost a sense of humor?’ but I don’t think that I have. I think one can be as snarky and sarcastic as lots of people, but I have never found that it makes me particularly happy. – Kenneth Branagh
Carrying a movie is both a great privilege, it’s a great opportunity, but it can be a great pressure, and sometimes that can make people behave very oddly. – Kenneth Branagh
In ‘Henry V,’ the story of the assumption of true and responsible leadership by Henry I think is hard-won. He has to lose friends; he has to risk his life. – Kenneth Branagh
For a nanosecond in the pre-Internet pre-digital age, I was a hot young actor, in the sense of popular, and then it passed. – Kenneth Branagh
I think A Midsummer Night’s Dream would be terrific because of the transformations that occur. Or The Tempest, things like that. Extraordinary larger than life or supernatural element. – Kenneth Branagh
My parents are the reason I wanted to make Shakespeare available to ordinary people. – Kenneth Branagh
I only really cast people who are desperate to be in it – who were dying to be in it, whose talent I believed in and were dead ready to do the work that was necessary. – Kenneth Branagh
I think in the wake of the domination of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, everyone is now looking for a grand plan. – Kenneth Branagh
I suppose, at 50, you value things in a different way. So you value connections, you value your friendships, you value your health, and you are much more aware of time passing. – Kenneth Branagh
The records – what little we know about Shakespeare, including the records of the plays in his playhouse – were often the story of how quickly they came off if they didn’t work. They had to move on. They were absolutely led by box office. – Kenneth Branagh
I suppose that was my first bit of acting, the acquisition of an English accent. It was really just an attempt to be understood. – Kenneth Branagh
I started being interested in acting when I heard the voices of Sir Laurence Olivier and Sir John Gielgud and Sir Alec Guinness. I’ve had the great privilege of working with Sir Derek Jacobi and Sir Anthony Hopkins. These are people who inspire the work that I do. – Kenneth Branagh
I remember the first book I bought, when I was about 11… Dad said, ‘What have you got that for? What are libraries for?’ – Kenneth Branagh
I don’t think Hamlet is mad, nor is he predisposed to be a gloomy or tragic figure. – Kenneth Branagh
I think that short films often contain an originality, a creative freedom, an energy and an invention that is inspiring and entertaining. I think they are, as Shakespeare put it, a good deed in a naughty world. – Kenneth Branagh
How many times do you read about ‘the Cinderella story,’ the story of the underdog, the story of the ordinary human being, often subjected to cruelty and ignorance and neglect, who somehow triumphs? – Kenneth Branagh