Get QuoteDark Inspirational Quotes App

" We don't like talking about race in the U.K. - it's a very sensitive subject. People get extremely defensive and run for the covers, but I believe we have to talk about it. "

Related Quotes:

" British people are surprised that I'm British! It's extraordinary, I get tweets every day from British people saying, 'I had no idea you were British.' "

David Harewood

Every Day

Saying

You

" American television, for all its faults, still has a black presence in shows and even in commercials. You'll see black people in automobile ads, black women starring on their own television shows. We don't see that on British television. "

" We have a generation of black actors playing leading roles on film and TV - Idris Elba, Chiwetel Ejiofor - which is great and is breaking the mould. "

" My black hero is and always will be Martin Luther King, not just because of the strength of his oratory but because his vision was very much the reality that I'd come to take for granted. "

" I love New York. New York is busy. It's dirty. It's smelly. I'm a real urban animal: I love cities. I like being in the middle of it all. "

" Myself, I believe that black theatre continues to evolve, and the success of writers like Bola Agbaje and Rachel De-lahay is proof that fresh voices continue to emerge. "

" You don't just win an Oscar because you're a great actor. You campaign for that Oscar: you engage with it; you go on the David Letterman show, and you do the interviews, and that's how you get out there. "

" Back in 2005, the Anthony Nolan Trust could have asked me just to speak out about the lack of ethnic minority donors on the bone marrow register, but that would have meant nothing if I wasn't prepared to join up myself. "

David Harewood

Back

Speak

" We all know the wonders of Skype, but there's nothing like getting a hug from your daughters or taking them to school. "

" My parents are very proud of my success but still worry, as I'm in a profession where there is no guarantee of work. They have always supported my decision to go into acting, but there have been tough times work-wise. "

" We all have insecurities, but some of us are better at covering them up. "

David Harewood

Better

Them

" As an actor, whether I'm playing Othello on stage or David Estes on 'Homeland,' that ability to give into your imagination is something that I enjoy. "

" I always tell younger actors that if they want to learn the ropes, there's no better place to do it than right here in the U.K. "

" Let's just say I like acting, but not necessarily all the stuff that comes with it. "

David Harewood

Just

Say

" Without a doubt, the majority of historical period dramas tend to be told from a certain perspective. At least in America, black people have some visibility in period dramas, although it's usually in the form of slaves or servitude. "

" There was the 'Cosby Show' in America in the 1980s, which was a doctor in a beautiful Brownstone middle-class house. We just haven't created a role like that in the U.K.; it's always gangs and crime. We need to be brave. "

" I'm very fortunate. I loved school and, when I went there, race, gangs and violence were not issues. There was a feeling, gone now, that you had to be presentable. If you hadn't combed your hair, older black ladies - complete strangers - would come up to you in the street and pull out a comb and straighten your tie. "

" Working with Olivia Colman has probably been the highlight of my career so far. "

" Growing up, I really looked up to the classic Hollywood actors like Spencer Tracy, Robert Mitchum, and Peter Falk. I love character actors - I've never wanted to be the leading guy. "

David Harewood

Growing Up

Character

" People come up and say very nice things about my work, like, 'You were great in 'Blood Diamond!' "

" It would be extraordinary if the BBC were to make me the first black 'Doctor Who;' it would be extraordinary. "

" Support for charities takes many forms. Some people give their money, some their spare time. I give my name and my voice. We give what we can to make a difference to the people and issues that matter to us. But what's most important, especially for celebrities, is giving our genuine commitment. "

" On the red carpet, one tip is to suck in your cheekbones - apparently it looks better on camera. I don't know, though; I think a nice smile is best. "

" Two years after drama school, I had a nervous breakdown: I heard voices, and the voice I heard in my head was Martin Luther King's. "

" I've been on 'Mastermind' - I tied for first place and then lost on the number of passes. My subject was the 'His Dark Materials' trilogy by Philip Pullman. If I did it again, I'd choose Shakespearian tragedies. "

" I started reading DC stuff much later in my life. You realize that there's a huge difference between the Marvel universe and the DC universe and the characters that own it. "

" There are countless fantastic actors out there who are being denied the opportunity to play Broadway because they're not a name, and I think that's kind of wrong. "

" I have always been reasonably anonymous, but I suppose that has gone with the success of 'Homeland.' I feel a lot more visible, which is good and bad. Good because I am getting recognition, but I am slightly apprehensive because I always enjoyed my anonymity. "

" We live in a world of strange priorities, where Kim Kardashian buying a Lamborghini creates international headlines, but children in Niger suffering from drought and children in Britain suffering from leukaemia go unnoticed. "

David Harewood

Live

Suffering

" On 'Supergirl,' there are huge characters with huge mythologies behind them. What's important is that you don't lock yourself into something. "