When I’m gigging, there’s an uneasy shift when I pull a puppet out. People look at me aghast and I feel I have about 20 seconds to win them over. You even get the prejudice among other people in your own profession. Nina Conti Read Quote
I make napkins talk in restaurants, socks talk on car journeys. There is an awful lot of puppetry going on in the house. Nina Conti Read Quote
I feel Scottish when with English people, and when I’m with Scottish people, I realise I’m English. Nina Conti Read Quote
I don’t want to tie myself into one area or the other. I think its important not to rely heavily on either TV or stand-up, but to let them work off of each other. Nina Conti Read Quote
The most satisfaction I get is from doing a good gig, which really makes you feel in control. If you’ve worked a room really well, it makes you feel great. TV is a bit more difficult; there are more factors that can screw it up along the way. Nina Conti Read Quote
So many actors are lively-minded, creative people who just tread water in this awful way, waiting for the phone to ring and doing their hair for auditions. It feels like a bit of a dreamer’s life – as opposed to a sensible ventriloquist’s life. Nina Conti Read Quote
I think I’ve got it pretty easy compared with somebody who works at a desk nine to five. I’m just working for an hour in the evening. I get a bit breathless, as I have to talk non-stop because of the puppets. Nina Conti Read Quote
The character of the monkey just grew from something out of his face and my granddad’s personality. They fused, and that’s what I ended up with! The monkey belonged to a friend of mine, and I saw that it had such a little beguiling face and it grew from there. Nina Conti Read Quote
I was really awful at auditions. There’s something about sitting down and saying into the camera: ‘I’m Nina and this is the name of my agent.’ That makes me just die inside. Nina Conti Read Quote
My dad is a much more flamboyant character than I am. I think that’s why I couldn’t see myself going into straight acting. I always just felt daft. Nina Conti Read Quote
