Terry Pratchett
Birthday:
28 April 1948, Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England, UK
Birth Name:
Terence David John Pratchett
Height:
173 cm
Terry Pratchett was born on April 28, 1948 in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England as Terence David John Pratchett. He was a writer and actor, known for Hogfather (2006), Going Postal (2010) and The Colour of Magic (2008). He was married to Lyn Marian Purves. He died on March 12, 2015 in Broadchalke, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England.
[His response to a TIME magazine article crediting J.K. Rowling with reinventing the fantasy genre]: "Ever since "The Lord of the Rings" rev...Show more »
[His response to a TIME magazine article crediting J.K. Rowling with reinventing the fantasy genre]: "Ever since "The Lord of the Rings" revitalized the genre, writers have played with it, reinvented it, subverted it and bent it to their times. It has also contained some of the very best, most accessible writing for children, by writers who seldom get the acknowledgment they deserve". Show less «
[His response to J.K. Rowling saying she wasn't aware that her "Harry Potter" books were fantasy until they were finished]: "I would have th...Show more »
[His response to J.K. Rowling saying she wasn't aware that her "Harry Potter" books were fantasy until they were finished]: "I would have thought that the wizards, witches, trolls, unicorns, and hidden worlds would have given her a clue?" Show less «
In ancient times cats were worshiped as gods. They have not forgotten this.
In ancient times cats were worshiped as gods. They have not forgotten this.
The baby boomers are getting older and will stay older for longer. And they will run right into the dementia firing range. How will a societ...Show more »
The baby boomers are getting older and will stay older for longer. And they will run right into the dementia firing range. How will a society cope? Especially a society that can't so readily rely on those stable family relationships that traditionally provided one backbone of care? Show less «
In the beginning there was nothing, which exploded.
In the beginning there was nothing, which exploded.
Fantasy is an exercise bicycle for the mind. It might not take you anywhere, but it tones up the muscles that can.
Fantasy is an exercise bicycle for the mind. It might not take you anywhere, but it tones up the muscles that can.
Most gods throw dice, but Fate plays chess, and you don't find out til too late that he's been playing with two queens all along.
Most gods throw dice, but Fate plays chess, and you don't find out til too late that he's been playing with two queens all along.
I wouldn't pay more than a couple of quid to see me, and I'm me.
I wouldn't pay more than a couple of quid to see me, and I'm me.
"Twinkle twinkle little star...." What power! What wondrous power! You can take a billion trillion tons of flaming matter, a furnace of unim...Show more »
"Twinkle twinkle little star...." What power! What wondrous power! You can take a billion trillion tons of flaming matter, a furnace of unimaginable strength, and turn it into a little song for children! You build little worlds, little stories, little shells around your minds, and that keeps infinity at bay and allows you to wake up in the morning without screaming! Show less «
They say that the prospect of being hanged in the morning concentrates a man's mind wonderfully; unfortunately what the mind inevitably conc...Show more »
They say that the prospect of being hanged in the morning concentrates a man's mind wonderfully; unfortunately what the mind inevitably concentrates on is that it is in a body that, in the morning, is going to be hanged. Show less «
The freedom to succeed goes hand in hand with the freedom to fail.
The freedom to succeed goes hand in hand with the freedom to fail.
Speak softly and employ a huge man with a crowbar.
Speak softly and employ a huge man with a crowbar.
There are those who say that sherry should not be drunk early in the morning. They are wrong.
There are those who say that sherry should not be drunk early in the morning. They are wrong.
You can't make people happy by law. If you said to a bunch of average people two hundred years ago "Would you be happy in a world where medi...Show more »
You can't make people happy by law. If you said to a bunch of average people two hundred years ago "Would you be happy in a world where medical care is widely available, houses are clean, the world's music and sights and foods can be brought into your home at small cost, traveling even 100 miles is easy, childbirth is generally not fatal to mother or child, you don't have to die of dental abscesses and you don't have to do what the squire tells you" they'd think you were talking about the New Jerusalem and say "yes." Show less «
Over the centuries, mankind has tried many ways of combating the forces of evil... prayer, fasting, good works and so on. Up until Doom (199...Show more »
Over the centuries, mankind has tried many ways of combating the forces of evil... prayer, fasting, good works and so on. Up until Doom (1993), no one seemed to have thought about the double-barrel shotgun. Eat leaden death, demon... Show less «
Go on, prove me wrong. Destroy the fabric of the universe. See if I care.
Go on, prove me wrong. Destroy the fabric of the universe. See if I care.
Everyone's heard of Erwin Schrodinger's famous thought experiment. You put a cat in a box with a bottle of poison, which many people would s...Show more »
Everyone's heard of Erwin Schrodinger's famous thought experiment. You put a cat in a box with a bottle of poison, which many people would suggest is about as far as you need to go... Show less «
As a fantasy writer I create fresh gods and philosophies almost with every new book ... But since contracting Alzheimer's disease I have spe...Show more »
As a fantasy writer I create fresh gods and philosophies almost with every new book ... But since contracting Alzheimer's disease I have spent my long winter walks trying to work out what it is that I really, if anything, believe. Show less «
Evolution was far more thrilling to me than the biblical account. Who would not rather be a rising ape than a falling angel? To my juvenile ...Show more »
Evolution was far more thrilling to me than the biblical account. Who would not rather be a rising ape than a falling angel? To my juvenile eyes Darwin was proved true every day. It doesn't take much to make us flip back into monkeys again. Show less «
I asked a teacher what the opposite of a miracle was and she, without thinking I assume, said it was an act of God. You shouldn't say someth...Show more »
I asked a teacher what the opposite of a miracle was and she, without thinking I assume, said it was an act of God. You shouldn't say something like that to the kind of kid who will grow up to be a writer; we have long memories. Show less «
I don't think I've found God, but I may have seen where gods come from.
I don't think I've found God, but I may have seen where gods come from.
If you have enough book space, I don't want to talk to you.
If you have enough book space, I don't want to talk to you.
It's amazing how much of fantasy is rearranging the furniture in Tolkein's attic.
It's amazing how much of fantasy is rearranging the furniture in Tolkein's attic.
They don't teach you the facts of death, your Mum and Dad. They give you pets.
They don't teach you the facts of death, your Mum and Dad. They give you pets.
[on being asked how he felt about his fans being "mostly anoraks"] The anorak is a perfectly sensible item of clothing! [Is it fair to say y...Show more »
[on being asked how he felt about his fans being "mostly anoraks"] The anorak is a perfectly sensible item of clothing! [Is it fair to say you've made a lot of money?] Yes, that's a very good description of the amount of money. Show less «