From the television series: "Yes, Minister"

  • Sir Humphrey: "I wonder if I might crave your momentary indulgence in order to discharge a by-no-means disagreeable obligation which has, over the years, become more or less established practice within government circles as we approach the terminal period of the calendar year, of course, not financial. In fact, not to put too fine a point on it, Week Fifty-One and submit to you, with all appropriate deference, for your consideration at a convenient juncture, a sincere and sanguine expectation -- indeed confidence, indeed one might go so far as to say hope -- that the aforementioned period may be, at the end of the day, when all relevant factors have been taken into consideration, susceptible to being deemed to be such as to merit a final verdict of having been by no means unsatisfactory in its overall outcome and, in the final analysis, to give grounds for being judged, on mature reflection, to have been conducive to generating a degree of gratification which will be seen in retrospect to have been significantly higher than the general average." (snip)
  • Jim Hacker: "Are you trying to say 'Happy Christmas,' Humphrey?"
  • Sir Humphrey: "Yes, Minister."

Sir Clive Sinclair interview (inventor of one of the home computers, doesn't use one!)

  • Sir Clive: "I don't use a computer at all. The company does."
  • Interviewer: "So you don't do email?"
  • Sir Clive: "No. I've got people to do it for me."
  • Interviewer: "If friends and family want to communicate?"
  • Sir Clive: "They can do that. We've got a computer in the front office, but I get someone to do it for me."
  • Interviewer: "That seems odd to me. Why is that?"
  • Sir Clive: "Sheer laziness I think. I can't be bothered."
  • Interviewer: "Do you not know how to operate it?"
  • Sir Clive: "I do know how to, but I don't."
  • Interviewer: "Sorry to press, but it seems the simplest thing in the world to do your own emails."
  • Sir Clive: "Well I find them annoying. I'd much prefer someone would telephone me if they want to communicate. No, it's not sheer laziness -- I just don't want to be distracted by the whole process. Nightmare."