--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I went from an unemployed actor's life to…" description: "\"I went from an unemployed actor's life to doing stand-up comedy, and that was fortuitous. It's not the usual way the crow flies, going from being in a ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/catherine-tate-17047_actor_i-went-from-an-unemployed-actor-s-life-t_72998.jpg" --- # I went from an unemployed actor's life to doing stand-up… ![“I went from an unemployed actor's life to doing stand-up comedy, and that was fortuitous. It's not the usual way the crow flies, going from being in a TV sketch show to playing one of Shakespeare's finest characters, but, hey, that's the way it has happened.” quote by Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/catherine-tate-17047_actor_i-went-from-an-unemployed-actor-s-life-t_72998.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/catherine-tate-17047_actor_i-went-from-an-unemployed-actor-s-life-t_72998.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/catherine-tate-17047_actor_i-went-from-an-unemployed-actor-s-life-t_72998.jpg) > “I went from an unemployed actor's life to doing stand-up comedy, and that was fortuitous. It's not the usual way the crow flies, going from being in a TV sketch show to playing one of Shakespeare's finest characters, but, hey, that's the way it has happened.” [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes a non‑linear career path where unexpected opportunities led from acting to comedy and then to classical theatre, highlighting serendipity over conventional progression. **In simple terms:** Non‑traditional career trajectory. Key Takeaway Success can arise from unexpected pivots. Themes career development serendipity adaptability creative arts non‑linear success Mood hopeful reflective inspired Type personal anecdote career insight When to use this quote - career counseling - motivational speaking - arts education - talent scouting Key Concepts career pivot skill transfer creative resilience Practical Applications - advice on embracing unconventional opportunities - case study for creative career planning Questions to Reflect On - What unexpected skill helped you transition? - How can you leverage serendipity in your field? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Being](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being/) [Characters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characters/) [Comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) [Fortuitous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fortuitous/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) [Stand up comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stand-up-comedy/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) [Unemployed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unemployed/) ## Related quotes > [I own half a million dollars worth of-houses in California. That's a lot for an unemployed actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-crane/i-own-half-a-million-dollars-worth-of-houses-in-california-that-s-a/) [Bob Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-crane/) > [The trouble with audition process is, when you're an unemployed actor, it's the only time you get to act, and it can be quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-williams/the-trouble-with-audition-process-is-when-you-re-an-unemployed-actor/) [Olivia Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-williams/) > [I must have had faith that day. When I went out, I was Henry Fonda again. An unemployed actor but a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-fonda/i-must-have-had-faith-that-day-when-i-went-out-i-was-henry-fonda/) [Henry Fonda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-fonda/) > [That was a bizarre and unlikely event, which has misled a generation of drama students from my old drama school that dreams really do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-williams/that-was-a-bizarre-and-unlikely-event-which-has-misled-a-generation/) [Olivia Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-williams/) > [I had to think ahead. How much would I really enjoy committing five or seven years to working on this? When you're an unemployed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-mcraney/i-had-to-think-ahead-how-much-would-i-really-enjoy-committing-five-or/) [Gerald McRaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-mcraney/) > [I spent six years touring the world playing Shakespeare, Molire, Shaw, Goldsmith... But I slowly came to realise that the people you are working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mangan/i-spent-six-years-touring-the-world-playing-shakespeare-molire-shaw/) [Stephen Mangan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mangan/) > [Playing Shakespeare is really tiring. You never get to sit down, unless you're the king.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-hull/playing-shakespeare-is-really-tiring-you-never-get-to-sit-down-unless/) Josephine Hull > [Classical plays require more imagination and more general training to be able to do. That's why I like playing Shakespeare better than anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivien-leigh/classical-plays-require-more-imagination-and-more-general-training-to/) [Vivien Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivien-leigh/) > [There is some mysterious thing that goes on whereby, in the process of playing Shakespeare continuously, actors are surprised by the way the language…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-branagh/there-is-some-mysterious-thing-that-goes-on-whereby-in-the-process-of/) [Kenneth Branagh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-branagh/) > [When you're playing Shakespeare, it forces you to think and feel and speak all at the same time, which really is what acting is.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-holland/when-you-re-playing-shakespeare-it-forces-you-to-think-and-feel-and/) [Andre Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-holland/) > [Playing Shakespeare requires technique. You don't play a Bach toccata by getting in the mood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-kline/playing-shakespeare-requires-technique-you-don-t-play-a-bach-toccata/) [Kevin Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-kline/) > [Timing in my life has been fortuitous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-buck/timing-in-my-life-has-been-fortuitous/) [Joe Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-buck/) > [Mathematics transfigures the fortuitous concourse of atoms into the tracery of the finger of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-turnbull/mathematics-transfigures-the-fortuitous-concourse-of-atoms-into-the/) Herbert Turnbull > [ It was very fortuitous that the show \[True Detective\] actually spans seventeen years - so as I was getting older on the show, I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-monaghan/it-was-very-fortuitous-that-the-show-true-detective-actually-spans/) [Michelle Monaghan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-monaghan/) > [To what fortuitous occurrence do we not owe every pleasure and convenience of our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/to-what-fortuitous-occurrence-do-we-not-owe-every-pleasure-and/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) ## More by Catherine Tate > [Because I was a shy and awkward child, I used humour to deflect attention. It was a controlling mechanism. Because I could use it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/because-i-was-a-shy-and-awkward-child-i-used-humour-to-deflect/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [“Am I bothered? Am I bothered though. I ain't doing nothing cause I ain't bothered.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/am-i-bothered-am-i-bothered-though-i-ain-t-doing-nothing-cause-i-ain/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [I used to go red when anybody spoke to me. It's awful because you absolutely cannot control it. If you are a child that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/i-used-to-go-red-when-anybody-spoke-to-me-it-s-awful-because-you/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [By a lot of people's standards, I lived a very privileged life. I never wanted for attention, I never wanted for material things. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/by-a-lot-of-people-s-standards-i-lived-a-very-privileged-life-i-never/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [When I realised I had a facility for humour, I latched on to it, and it gave me confidence and I built my personality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/when-i-realised-i-had-a-facility-for-humour-i-latched-on-to-it-and-it/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [Few things focus the mind like fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/few-things-focus-the-mind-like-fear/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [Nothing prompts creativity like poverty, a feeling of hopelessness, and a bit of panic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/nothing-prompts-creativity-like-poverty-a-feeling-of-hopelessness-and/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [I'm not frightened of a bit of silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/i-m-not-frightened-of-a-bit-of-silence/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [I'm an incredibly negative person, so any form of success is only ever going to be a relief to me and set my default…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/i-m-an-incredibly-negative-person-so-any-form-of-success-is-only-ever/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [I don't know why, but people tend to look at stand-ups and think they can act, which actually isn't the case. But never mind.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/i-don-t-know-why-but-people-tend-to-look-at-stand-ups-and-think-they/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [I've never really thought I'd get married. It's not that I'm suspicious of it or anything like that, it's just that I don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/i-ve-never-really-thought-i-d-get-married-it-s-not-that-i-m/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [I realised that if you get yourself labeled as the funny one, people don't look any further. I've used that as I've got older.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/i-realised-that-if-you-get-yourself-labeled-as-the-funny-one-people/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [Nothing is ever going to be as important or as exciting as a baby. Everyone has their highs and lows, but if you've got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/nothing-is-ever-going-to-be-as-important-or-as-exciting-as-a-baby/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [If I hadn't had a baby, a part of me thinks I might have turned up on the red carpets all the time and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/if-i-hadn-t-had-a-baby-a-part-of-me-thinks-i-might-have-turned-up-on/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) > [I will absolutely say that whatever job I was asked to do, whatever schedule I was asked to work, it is never going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/i-will-absolutely-say-that-whatever-job-i-was-asked-to-do-whatever/) [Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) [Explore all 38 Catherine Tate quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/) ## More Actor quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I once told someone I could act. They totally bought it. I've been getting away with it ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akshay-kumar/i-once-told-someone-i-could-act-they-totally-bought-it-i-ve-been/) [Akshay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akshay-kumar/) > [There has got to be a way for me to have a role on TV or in film that is just as normal as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adeel-akhtar/there-has-got-to-be-a-way-for-me-to-have-a-role-on-tv-or-in-film-that/) [Adeel Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adeel-akhtar/) > [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. Hollywood loves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-goyer/i-love-casting-against-type-and-doing-things-you-wouldn-t-expect/) [David S. Goyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-goyer/) > [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/) [Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When I was 13, I auditioned for the theater school, and I was there for four years. In the meantime, I did my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-de-armas/when-i-was-13-i-auditioned-for-the-theater-school-and-i-was-there-for/) [Ana de Armas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-de-armas/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) > [Actors don't hate acting. Most people don't hate acting! Whether you're a child mucking around with your friends or a grown up being paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-hewson/actors-don-t-hate-acting-most-people-don-t-hate-acting-whether-you-re/) [Liv Hewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-hewson/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [I never planned to do female roles. It just happened. I was typecast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divine/i-never-planned-to-do-female-roles-it-just-happened-i-was-typecast/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divine/) > [Once I committed to acting, this has been it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-hudson/once-i-committed-to-acting-this-has-been-it/) [Ernie Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-hudson/) [Browse all 21,590 Actor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I went from an unemployed actor's life to doing stand-up comedy, and that was fortuitous. 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