“At school, I decided I wanted to be a director and then I went out and...” — Stephen Daldry Quote

At school, I decided I wanted to be a director and then I went out and spent the rest of my adult life trying to be a director. It was really clear to me. So in that sense I was very lucky.

If I wanted to work financially, I would have made a series of different choices. I do get offered lots of movies which you could make a lot of money out of. And I always say, 'Why would I do that, when someone else could do it much better than me? Why would I want to do an action picture? Why?'

I categorically resist this idea that films are supposed to be autobiographical and the only stories you tell are about your own life.

The really successful work in England tends to be working-class writers telling working-class stories. The film industry has been slow to wake up to that, for a variety of reasons. It still shocks me how few films are written or made in England about working-class life, given that those are the people who go to movies.

Everyone prefers some foods over others, but some adults take this tendency to an extreme. These people tend to prefer the kinds of bland food they may have enjoyed as children - such as plain or buttered pasta, macaroni and cheese, cheese pizza, French fries and grilled cheese sandwiches - and to restrict their eating to just a few dishes.

I wouldn't say in all situations, but a lot of times kids can be the most reasonable people around because they don't have the deal with all the drama that goes along with being an adult.

'No Scrubs' is a mean song for a lot of reasons. If you're 18, 19-year-old guy, or even 17, your friend just got a license. You don't have a real job yet. It's like that song asks you to be an adult way faster than you should.

I'm not terribly conversant with children's literature in general. I tend to read books for adults, being an adult.