Why is Stephen Fry so passionate about the ancient Greeks?

Greek here .This man's speech intelligence and wit is out of this world. I admire him so much. He has studied a lot of greek philosophy and has read so many books. It seems like he has the outmost respect for the Hellenic culture and history and his in depth "dive" in the Hellenic literature has elevated this man's spirit (and sorry for my poetic hyperbole) to the levels of the ancient Hellenes. If one person should be called Hellenas it is him. The whole world concept that Hellenes had and their level of intelligence lives through this man. It feels weird because this man is more "Greek" than many that are actually native Greeks. Mr Fry you are a magnificent human being i would be lucky to meet you one day and talk about Greek philosophy.

"I won't bore you too much" he could talk about the history of toilets and I'd be mesmerised

I could listen to him talk for hours... I did in fact, with his audiobooks !

Fun fact: Fighter pilots in training are called Ikarus in Greece

Bring back the Hellenistic glory.. even the Romans was enamored by the Greeks. Even thought I am Asian and came from multicultural incredibly ancient culture such as china and japan and the Philippines.. I am fascinated and deeply respected Greek culture.. ended up marrying a Greek wonderful woman.. Our twins are named.. Herodotus and Persephone.

I adore the ancient Greeks, you can clearly see for the first time in history a culture of thinking and progress emerge. For the fact our language, thinking, and many ways of life are directly inspired by them show how they laid so many foundations for us.

"Let's try to be better than our parents." This is such a low bar that it depresses to me to realize just how few people can hurdle it.

As a Greek i think is a great privilege for the Greek history , a person like Stephen Fry with so much education and so big platform to be philhellene. Thank you phile mou ( my friend).

I am Greek and l must say that he understands us more than everyone.

Fun fact: more than 52.000 English words are Greek for example (alphabet, astronomy, history, harmony, music, galaxy, mathematics, philosophy and others.

Just finished his book: "Heroes" ...Brilliant! Get it...

No other small country can compare with Greece in terms of impact on human benefit. And that is a textbook example of Greek exceptionalism, indeed. Plus: Robin Williams Was A Philhellene. His Words On Greece. Back in 2011, Williams gave an interview with a Greek TV host Katsidis promoted the animated feature “Happy Feet 2,” to which he lent his voice. During the interview, Williams expressed his appreciation for Greece and touched us all.– I know you’ve visited Greece. What do you think? I have come for a holiday on a boat and we went to all the islands. Facing them you say: “I can not believe that there is recounted everything we read in Greek mythology.” Greek History is something all mankind must bow to. Maybe your economy goes to hell, but that does not mean you’re helpless. Economic data is constantly changing in Europe and America for all. What is not changing is the legacy, your identity. The Parthenon does not leave Athens. It’s there to remind you that progress and prosperity may return. I am now in England, for example, I went nowhere. I’m here to promote the movie and I will leave. What to see, Buckingham Palace? I do not care. As when I go to Germany, I’m not interested in the Berlin Wall, which is not a symbol of prosperity, but the opposite. But you can not ignore Delos, the Parthenon, and Mycenae! Thank you, Robin Williams. You will be missed, indeed.💙💙💙💙

Aas a Greek Australian , im always thrilled to see intellectuals like Mr Fry support The Greek Culture and way of thinking. We need more people like him. Love his books .. interesting way to try to explain some Greek concepts in the English language. 😊 looking forward to hearing and reading more of his lovely books.

Love this guy!!! What an interesting man. Could listen to him endlessly.

Stephen Fry at his best...I could listen to him for hours

Love it! These books are great. His narration on audiobook is brilliant. Love it!

A very clever and funny man. Love listening to him.

I wasn't aware of the point about the sea levels, that's really interesting if it's true. Ironically Egypt is famous for it's incredibly predictable Nile seasonal flooding.

Thank you for your input to the world. You are a decent man which makes you a treasure to the nation.

I love Stephen Fry I wish he would do ‘The Fry Lectures’ that would be something worth listening to…..he should have been a professor