Quotes from Chris Lilley

It's pretty awful being told you're a racist.

There are bits of me in all my characters.

I feel like I'm so normal. So normal it's boring.

I didn't do very well academically; I was always in the bottom class.

I'm not really a management-type person. It doesn't suit my personality to be bossing people around.

I was sure 'Summer Heights High' would be a cult ABC thing; I had no idea it would be such a big hit.

I think surprises make TV entertaining.

I'm interested in youth culture - when your parents are running your life, but you think you're the big man - but I'm not trying to make a statement.

I have a massive guilt thing about money.

Religious humor is not really my area, so I probably wouldn't do anything about that, or politics or something.

I'm so independent in writing stuff and controlling what I do. Sometimes I get calls from people asking to be in their movie, but I'm always writing or editing, and I can never get around to doing it. I'm so much more interested in my own stuff. I think I drive my agent crazy.

I get asked to do stupid things like panel shows and talk shows and things.

I'm not interested in being one of those comedians who wants to look good and be this 'cool' funny person. I don't care how weird or ugly I look.

Films do seem prestigious and glamorous, but when you create something, you want people to see it. TV still reaches so many more people; it still really appeals to me.

I never like to think of any character as being over. I'm always thinking of different ways of bringing them back.

I'm not a big comedy show-watcher, but I love Ricky Gervais' stuff and Sacha Baron Cohen's things. But I'm not an expert on them. I've seen them once.

I get bored with the constant probing for the cliched tears of the clown, the dark side of the comic.

I find teenage girls endlessly funny.

It's barely OK for me to be dressed up as a black guy. But part of me kind of enjoys provoking people.

I just do what I think is funny and what's exciting to me.

I feel really qualified to write about Australia.

Australia has a thing where apparently it's fine for me to dress up as an Asian woman. No one has questioned that.

Mostly, what I watch are reality shows and documentaries.

People were making fun of redheads before I came along.