On the pressure to be funny
“People come up to me in supermarkets and demand humour. The less amusing I am, the more they piss themselves. So I say, ‘I’m doing my shopping mate, OK?’ and the guy will be on the floor in hysterics. Quite odd.” (2004)
On Alan Partridge
“He’s slightly right wing, he’s narrow-minded, a Little Englander, he’s xenophobic, he’s insecure, he’s basically decent even though he’s all those things. He’s a Daily Mail reader.” (2005)
On being judged by the tabloids
“Look, I’m not Mother Teresa, but I’m not Frank Bough either. If you catch me preaching fidelity while I am shagging chickens, then throw the book at me. Otherwise, leave me alone.” (2006)
On his flaunting his success
“I got a kick out of my comedy being admired by intellectuals as edgy and clever. So I got this big, vulgar sports car. It was a sort of ‘f**k off’ to anybody who thought edgy comedy people should behave in an edgy way.” (2005)
On drugs
“Do they help you? Not really. But let’s put it in perspective: Aldous Huxley got a good novel out of them.” (2006)
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On ending up in a hot tub with Arnold Schwarzenegger
“It was bizarre, weird and extraordinary. And also a strangely homoerotic experience for me . . .” (2004)
On the joys of stand-up
“When I’m in front of 2,000 people making them laugh at the same thing, I’m in a Zen state, the most comfortable place I know.” (2008)
On scattering £10,000 on a bed before a lapdancer
“I was being ironic. Unfortunately, she had no ironic side to her.” (2004)
On Top Gear
“If I say anything racist or sexist as Alan Partridge, the joke is clear. We are laughing at a lack of judgment and ignorance. With Top Gear it is three rich middle-aged men laughing at poor Mexicans.” (2011)
Steve Coogan will appear in a Q&A with Rob Brydon and Richard Curtis at Latitude Festival, July 14