John Mortimer
John Mortimer
Sir John Clifford Mortimer, CBE, QC was an English barrister, dramatist, screenwriter, and author...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionNovelist
Date of Birth21 April 1923
antidote best children mile possible spot
Children can spot pomposity, insincerity and self-regard a mile off and are the best possible antidote to such diseases.
hurt children hate
I found criminal clients easy and matrimonial clients hard. Matrimonial clients hate each other so much and use their children to hurt each other in beastly ways. Murderers have usually killed the one person in the world that was bugging them and they're usually quite peaceful and agreeable.
children people childhood
Like childhood, old age is irresponsible, reckless, and foolhardy. Children and old people have everything to gain and nothing much to lose. It's middle-age which is cursed by the desperate need to cling to some finger-hold halfway up the mountain, to conform, not to cause trouble, to behave well....
children believe book
I don't believe in children's books. I think after you've read Kidnapped, Treasure Island, and Huckleberry Finn, you're ready for anything.
children flower aggravation
All the flower children were as alike as a congress of accountants and about as interesting.
education children thinking
The main aim of education should be to send children out into the world with a reasonably sized anthology in their heads so that, while seated on the lavatory, waiting in doctors' surgeries, on stationary trains or watching interviews with politicians, they may have something interesting to think about.
running children party
Writing about the indignities of old age: the daunting stairway to the restaurant restroom, the benefits of a wheelchair in airports and its disadvantages at cocktail parties, giving the user what he described as a child's-eye view of the party and a crotch-level view of the guests. Dying is a matter of slapstick and pratfalls. The aging process is not gradual or gentle. It rushes up, pushes you over and runs off laughing. No one should grow old who isn't ready to appear ridiculous.
good-life children class
The worst fault of the working classes is telling their children they're not going to succeed, saying: There is life, but it's not for you.
good thoughts
Where There's a Will: Thoughts on the Good Life.
english-novelist geriatric pleasure
There is no pleasure worth forgoing just for an extra three years in the geriatric ward.
eyes knew
He had his eyes open. We knew he was alive. He knew I was there.
arthritis attack full love man medical remember shocking
Attack the medical evidence. Remember the jury's full of rheumatism and arthritis and shocking gastric troubles. They love to see a medical man put through it.
brilliance clean common english-novelist law relatively required
No brilliance is required in law, just common sense and relatively clean fingernails.
fully importance instant moment recognize single true
should recognize the true importance of a single moment in time, the instant when you are fully and completely alive.