--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's a bit like laughter in church…" description: "\"It's a bit like laughter in church, something has to be forbidden to make you really laugh, to make you really belly laugh. It's when you shouldn't be ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/maureen-lipman-4256_church_it-s-a-bit-like-laughter-in-church-somet_1691370.png" --- # It's a bit like laughter in church, something has to be… ![“It's a bit like laughter in church, something has to be forbidden to make you really laugh, to make you really belly laugh. It's when you shouldn't be laughing. And so, therefore, all the things that are being cancelled out are, I'm afraid, the things that have always made people laugh.” quote by Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/maureen-lipman-4256_church_it-s-a-bit-like-laughter-in-church-somet_1691370.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/maureen-lipman-4256_church_it-s-a-bit-like-laughter-in-church-somet_1691370.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/479/maureen-lipman-4256_church_it-s-a-bit-like-laughter-in-church-somet_1691370.png) > “It's a bit like laughter in church, something has to be forbidden to make you really laugh, to make you really belly laugh. It's when you shouldn't be laughing. And so, therefore, all the things that are being cancelled out are, I'm afraid, the things that have always made people laugh.” [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humor thrives on taboo; forbidden topics trigger stronger laughter. **In simple terms:** Forbidden things make us laugh more. Key Takeaway Embrace the edge in comedy. Themes comedy taboo psychology Mood playful provocative Type observational satirical When to use this quote - stand‑up routines - satire - political commentary Key Concepts social norms catharsis Questions to Reflect On - What boundaries do you test in jokes? - When does edginess become offensive? A Different Perspective Humor can alienate if not balanced. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Laughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laughter/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [Laughter was a part of the church services I attended as a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bil-keane/laughter-was-a-part-of-the-church-services-i-attended-as-a-child/) [Bil Keane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bil-keane/) > [A Fabulous Quote By The Comedy King Charlie Chaplin-- Your Pain May Give Laugh To Somebody But Your Laugh Shouldn't Give Pain To Anybody !!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron/a-fabulous-quote-by-the-comedy-king-charlie-chaplin-your-pain-may/) [AaRon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron/) > [Edgy is fine - I'm not a prude by any stretch of the imagination - but what's wrong with a good ol' belly laugh?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-burnett/edgy-is-fine-i-m-not-a-prude-by-any-stretch-of-the-imagination-but/) [Carol Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-burnett/) > [Your Pain May Give Laugh To Somebody But Your Laugh Shouldn't Give Pain To Anybody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-chaplin/your-pain-may-give-laugh-to-somebody-but-your-laugh-shouldn-t-give/) [Charlie Chaplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-chaplin/) > [I like some of my stuff not to be particularly funny. It's supposed to be amusing, entertaining or thought-provoking, like a curiosity. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/limmy/i-like-some-of-my-stuff-not-to-be-particularly-funny-it-s-supposed-to/) [Limmy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/limmy/) > [When you've learned to laugh at the things that should be laughed at, and not to laugh at those that shouldn't, you've got wisdom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-maud-montgomery/when-you-ve-learned-to-laugh-at-the-things-that-should-be-laughed-at-2/) [Lucy Maud Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-maud-montgomery/) > [Each time I see the Upside-Down Man Standing in the water, I look at him and start to laugh, Although I shouldn't oughtter. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shel-silverstein/each-time-i-see-the-upside-down-man-standing-in-the-water-i-look-at/) [Shel Silverstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shel-silverstein/) > [If you can jump up onstage and make people laugh, shouldn't you also be able to inhabit a character?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bana/if-you-can-jump-up-onstage-and-make-people-laugh-shouldn-t-you-also/) [Eric Bana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bana/) > [I think it is a great gift to make people laugh, and it shouldn't be underestimated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beeban-kidron/i-think-it-is-a-great-gift-to-make-people-laugh-and-it-shouldn-t-be/) [Beeban Kidron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beeban-kidron/) > [There are lines that I know are going to get a belly laugh, but after a few shows I get sick of hearing myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammy-davis-jr/there-are-lines-that-i-know-are-going-to-get-a-belly-laugh-but-after/) [Sammy Davis, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammy-davis-jr/) > [I was learning that among friends, a smile can be better than a belly laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/i-was-learning-that-among-friends-a-smile-can-be-better-than-a-belly/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [Transforming a line like that makes it into a belly laugh instead of a laugh against us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-young/transforming-a-line-like-that-makes-it-into-a-belly-laugh-instead-of/) Terence Young > [I've found out why people laugh. They laugh because it hurts so much... because it's the only thing that'll make it stop hurting" ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/i-ve-found-out-why-people-laugh-they-laugh-because-it-hurts-so-much/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Primarily I'm a social commentator rather than someone who's out to get the belly laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-shapiro/primarily-i-m-a-social-commentator-rather-than-someone-who-s-out-to/) [Jonathan Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-shapiro/) > [“I've found out why people laugh. They laugh because it hurts... because its the only thing that'll make it stop hurting. But find me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/i-ve-found-out-why-people-laugh-they-laugh-because-it-hurts-because/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) ## More by Maureen Lipman > [I do have opinions. Fortunately, I neither Twitter nor Facebook. My daughter forbids me to go on social media.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/i-do-have-opinions-fortunately-i-neither-twitter-nor-facebook-my/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [A tortoise is, I suppose, a Jewish pet. It knows its place. Out on the lawn. It doesn't bark. It doesn't tear the Dralon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/a-tortoise-is-i-suppose-a-jewish-pet-it-knows-its-place-out-on-the/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [Dad was hopeless with money, even though he ran a business. We lived in a small terrace house and I vividly remember going into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/dad-was-hopeless-with-money-even-though-he-ran-a-business-we-lived-in/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [I've often unwittingly done the wrong thing; most things you mess up in life you do through nerves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/i-ve-often-unwittingly-done-the-wrong-thing-most-things-you-mess-up/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [My mother, Zelma, was an influence on my career. When I was six or seven I started singing, imitating people like Eartha Kitt, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/my-mother-zelma-was-an-influence-on-my-career-when-i-was-six-or-seven/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [I've never done a drama series, and that's quite a mystery to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/i-ve-never-done-a-drama-series-and-that-s-quite-a-mystery-to-me/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [I'm full of ideas and general crackling chemistry and I can read the 'score' of a comedy as though it's a musical score.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/i-m-full-of-ideas-and-general-crackling-chemistry-and-i-can-read-the/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [My whole family was very funny, each in their own way, and you had to be quick to get a word in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/my-whole-family-was-very-funny-each-in-their-own-way-and-you-had-to/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [I'm not looking at anyone on television and thinking: why do I never get those parts?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/i-m-not-looking-at-anyone-on-television-and-thinking-why-do-i-never/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [Though Maggie Smith and Judi Dench have done all right, there's not a lot of drama work out there for older actresses. And you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/though-maggie-smith-and-judi-dench-have-done-all-right-there-s-not-a/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [Let's teach our daughters, and our sons I suppose: it is possible to say 'no' without rancour, without anger, without emotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/let-s-teach-our-daughters-and-our-sons-i-suppose-it-is-possible-to/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [I say yes when I mean no. I've done it all my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/i-say-yes-when-i-mean-no-i-ve-done-it-all-my-life/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [I have decent hair; it's one of the few things I like about me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/i-have-decent-hair-it-s-one-of-the-few-things-i-like-about-me/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [I drink hot water with lemon juice, a few drops of cider vinegar, a pinch of cayenne and turmeric, and a little maple syrup.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/i-drink-hot-water-with-lemon-juice-a-few-drops-of-cider-vinegar-a/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) > [It's very fortunate to have had two soul mates in one lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-lipman/it-s-very-fortunate-to-have-had-two-soul-mates-in-one-lifetime/) [Maureen Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) [Explore all 113 Maureen Lipman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-lipman/) ## More Church quotes > [While the 1963 Birmingham church bombing is the most historic, there also was a series of church burnings in the 1990s. Recognition of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthea-butler/while-the-1963-birmingham-church-bombing-is-the-most-historic-there/) [Anthea Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthea-butler/) > [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/) [Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/) > [Turn over the pages of history and read the damning record of the church's opposition to every advance in every field of science. . . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/upton-sinclair/turn-over-the-pages-of-history-and-read-the-damning-record-of-the/) [Upton Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/upton-sinclair/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/) [Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/) > [God is not calling us to go to church; he is calling us to be his church, the hope of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-groeschel/god-is-not-calling-us-to-go-to-church-he-is-calling-us-to-be-his/) [Craig Groeschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-groeschel/) > [The emerging church movement has come to believe that the ultimate context of the spiritual aspirations of a follower of Jesus Christ is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samir-selmanovic/the-emerging-church-movement-has-come-to-believe-that-the-ultimate/) [Samir Selmanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samir-selmanovic/) > [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [There could be no more powerful argument against mixing religion and government than the success of independent African American churches in placing racial segregation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/there-could-be-no-more-powerful-argument-against-mixing-religion-and/) [Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/) > [Worship is not about personality, temperament, personal limitations, church background, or comfort. It is about God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wimber/worship-is-not-about-personality-temperament-personal-limitations/) [John Wimber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wimber/) > [A beggarly people, A church and no steeple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-macaulay/a-beggarly-people-a-church-and-no-steeple/) [Thomas B. Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-b-macaulay/) > [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [The religion of art, like the religion of politics, was born from the ruins of Christianity. Art inherited from the old religion the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/the-religion-of-art-like-the-religion-of-politics-was-born-from-the/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [The minute you walk outside of your church on Sunday you're in mission territory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-minute-you-walk-outside-of-your-church-on-sunday-you-re-in/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [I'm not ashamed of the things I believe and why I believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-huckabee/i-m-not-ashamed-of-the-things-i-believe-and-why-i-believe-them/) [Mike Huckabee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-huckabee/) [Browse all 9,430 Church quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's a bit like laughter in church, something has to be forbidden to make you really laugh, to make you really belly laugh. 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