--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was writing 'Withnail,' I was so…" description: "\"When I was writing 'Withnail,' I was so busted flat that I had one lightbulb that I would carry around the house with me. I mean, really. No furniture,..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db1/bruce-robinson-23434_actor_when-i-was-writing-withnail-i-was-so-bus_2825798.png" --- # When I was writing 'Withnail,' I was so busted flat that I… ![“When I was writing 'Withnail,' I was so busted flat that I had one lightbulb that I would carry around the house with me. I mean, really. No furniture, no money, and I was hoping to be an actor, but I could never get a job.” quote by Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db1/bruce-robinson-23434_actor_when-i-was-writing-withnail-i-was-so-bus_2825798.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db1/bruce-robinson-23434_actor_when-i-was-writing-withnail-i-was-so-bus_2825798.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db1/bruce-robinson-23434_actor_when-i-was-writing-withnail-i-was-so-bus_2825798.png) > “When I was writing 'Withnail,' I was so busted flat that I had one lightbulb that I would carry around the house with me. I mean, really. No furniture, no money, and I was hoping to be an actor, but I could never get a job.” [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He was extremely broke, living without furniture or money, hoping to act but never finding work. **In simple terms:** He was very poor while trying to become an actor. Key Takeaway Recognize hardship as part of creative pursuit. Themes poverty aspiration creativity Mood desperate reflective Type personal narrative When to use this quote - housing insecurity - career struggle - seeking acting roles Key Concepts financial instability artistic drive Questions to Reflect On - How does financial strain affect artistic output? - What strategies help sustain creativity during scarcity? A Different Perspective Being broke can limit resources needed for artistic work. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Around](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/around/) [Busted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/busted/) [Busted Flat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/busted-flat-3622490/) [Carry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carry/) [Could](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/could/) [Flat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flat/) [Flat Lightbulb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flat-lightbulb-3622491/) [Furniture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/furniture/) [Get](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/get/) [Had](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/had/) [Hoping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hoping/) [House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/house/) [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Lightbulb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lightbulb-736977/) [Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Never](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/never/) [Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really/) [Withnail Busted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/withnail-busted-3622489/) [Would](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Withnail](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-withnail-3622492/) ## Related quotes > [It takes zero politically correct people to screw in a lightbulb because they are perpetually in the dark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-miller/it-takes-zero-politically-correct-people-to-screw-in-a-lightbulb/) [Dennis Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-miller/) > [“How many consultants does it take to change a lightbulb? 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"Not like that. That's a flyine sixty-watt lightbulb.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lenahan/conor-haven-t-you-ever-seen-a-firefly-before-not-like-that-that-s-a/) [John Lenahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lenahan/) ## More by Bruce Robinson > [Isn't that the definition of a star? 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And we want them now .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-robinson/balls-we-want-the-finest-wines-available-to-humanity-and-we-want-them/) [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) > [“Dostoyevsky described hell as perhaps nothing more than a room with a chair in it. This room has several chairs. A young man sits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-robinson/dostoyevsky-described-hell-as-perhaps-nothing-more-than-a-room-with-a/) [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) > [“We've gone on holiday by mistake”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-robinson/we-ve-gone-on-holiday-by-mistake/) [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) > [I like situational comedy when people are being completely serious and yet you can find something extremely funny, not jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-robinson/i-like-situational-comedy-when-people-are-being-completely-serious/) [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) > [I read 'The Rum Diary,' and I didn't really like it very much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-robinson/i-read-the-rum-diary-and-i-didn-t-really-like-it-very-much/) [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) > [We are indeed drifting into the arena of the unwell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-robinson/we-are-indeed-drifting-into-the-arena-of-the-unwell/) [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) > [I think you're a good person or a todd by the age of eight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-robinson/i-think-you-re-a-good-person-or-a-todd-by-the-age-of-eight/) [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) > [He didn't like religion, hadn't liked it for years, but he adored churches, loved them like old scientific instruments whose time is long past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-robinson/he-didn-t-like-religion-hadn-t-liked-it-for-years-but-he-adored/) [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) > [Bernard Shaw said that when you copy yourself, you know you've got style. 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