"God always has another custard pie up his sleeve"
About this Quote
The intent feels like self-defense disguised as charm. Redgrave, from an acting dynasty and a life spent in public view, understood how quickly a narrative can tilt: acclaim to scandal, romance to tabloid, health to diagnosis. Calling it a custard pie is a way of refusing the grand, tragic script. It’s not “why me?”; it’s “of course,” said with a wry shrug. That’s the subtext: misfortune is real, but melodrama is optional.
“Up his sleeve” matters, too. It implies concealment and performance - the world as stage, the deity as magician-comedian, the individual as the straight man who keeps getting hit. Redgrave’s profession sharpens the metaphor: actors live by timing, beats, and the sudden entrance that changes everything. The quote works because it offers a practical philosophy for modern unpredictability: expect disruption, keep your dignity flexible, and if you’re going to get hit, at least don’t give the moment the satisfaction of reverence.
Quote Details
| Topic | Witty One-Liners |
|---|---|
| Source | Verified source: The 2,548 Wittiest Things Anybody Ever Said (2012)ISBN: 9781451648904 · ID: N2CQ-uFU56gC
Evidence: ... God always has another custard pie up his sleeve. —Lynn Redgrave (1943–2010) 688 If your prayers were always answered , you'd have. robert byrne. Other candidates (1) The Harvard Crimson: Georgy Girl review (Lynn Redgrave, 1966)50.0% "God always has a custard pie up his sleeve.". The earliest primary-source-adjacent evidence I could verify is a cont... |
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Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Redgrave, Lynn. (2026, March 16). God always has another custard pie up his sleeve. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/god-always-has-another-custard-pie-up-his-sleeve-119223/
Chicago Style
Redgrave, Lynn. "God always has another custard pie up his sleeve." FixQuotes. March 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/god-always-has-another-custard-pie-up-his-sleeve-119223/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"God always has another custard pie up his sleeve." FixQuotes, 16 Mar. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/god-always-has-another-custard-pie-up-his-sleeve-119223/. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.











