I was living on a loaf of bread a week.
— Eddie the Eagle
I don't regard myself as an entertainer. I don't think that's where my talents lie. It always feels a bit uncomfortable.
People still think I'm a bit of a buffoon - not really an athlete.
We were not rich by any means. My dad was a plasterer and worked long hours - I hardly ever saw him when I was growing up. He had always gone to work before I woke up, and usually, I would be in bed before he came home.
There are so many world-class athletes who are great at their sport, but they're so boring. They don't talk, and they can't be interviewed very well.
I can't explain my popularity. I suppose I'm just an ordinary bloke, and a lot of people see a little bit of Eddie in themselves.
I want to be recognised as exemplifying the Olympic spirit - one of the last true Olympians.
I was exemplifying the Olympian who took up a challenge as a sportsman, without a trainer, in a country without mountains and without snow. And, inside of two years, I was representing my country.
I actually had huge problems with my glasses steaming up all the time. I had to train very carefully around the limitations caused by wearing them.
People really aren't interested in the way I look. It's my personality they like.
I want to prove to the skeptics that I'm not a clown. I'm very serious about what I do. I want to be a good ski jumper who has a sense of humor.
I would never think of asking a girl out on the High Street or the disco or at school. But on the ski slope, I would chat to all the girls.
In my case, there are only two kinds of hope - Bob Hope and no hope.
If you have got a dream and you've got ambition, then go for it. You know, unless you try, you'll never know.
I did a tandem parachute jump when I opened a golf course in Atlanta, Georgia. I jumped out of a plane at 15,000 feet to land on the first tee, and then I played a couple of holes with golfer Arnold Palmer. That was brilliant.
I want my life to move on. On the other hand, I can't say no to offers, not when I'm getting £50,000 a year to be Eddie the Eagle.
On the street, I'll hear, 'You made the Olympics for me,' or 'I love what you represented.' Only occasionally is it, 'You were a flop, an also-ran, a loser.'
I liked being Eddie the Eagle, but I also like being Michael Edwards, plasterer and general builder.
A lot of people think I'm really outgoing and confident, but I'm not. I'd much rather sit in a corner and read my book and my paper. I'm quite happy with my own company.
I was a latchkey kid. Every afternoon, I would walk home from school, let myself in, make myself a banana buttie, and watch telly until Mum came home.
Both parents were hard-working and made me work for my pocket money by doing household chores. That taught me the value of money and gave me a strong work ethic.
I have never, ever considered myself a failure.
I broke my jaw jumping, and I broke my back and my neck in the downhill. This is normal for me.
It takes a lot of guts to jump. If people criticise, I would give them a set of skis and say, 'Do it yourself then.'
I travelled the world because of the way people saw me at the Olympics.
Some people thought I was bringing the sport down. I don't think so. I was the best and only jumper my country had.
I have a big chin. Thick glasses.
I made my dream come true despite all the obstacles - no money, no training, no skis, no snow.
You can't have Alan Partridge as Eddie the Eagle!
The failures are the people who never get off their bums.
The only airline I avoid like the plague is Ryanair. I don't like that, when you book, there are then all of these little extras to pay for, and you end up paying more than just flying with British Airways.
After my ski jumping career finished, I went back to school to study law, and now I travel between five to 20 times a year doing after-dinner speaking, motivational talks, appearances, openings, TV and radio shows.
I was a true amateur and embodied what the Olympic spirit is all about. To me, competing was all that mattered.
Where is it written that the Olympics are only for winners?
For me, I was never someone who wanted to hold on to the celebrity image.
My dentist said my teeth were wearing away at the back because I couldn't bite. My top jaw was broken and brought forward, and my bottom jaw was broken and put back.
My mother looked after me full-time when I was young, but as soon as I started school, she got a job in an office.
It had been a dream of mine to go to an Olympic Games since I was about seven years old. I didn't know I'd do it ski jumping, but that's how it turned out.
I'm the Eagle: I can fly.
You have to take the rough with the smooth - that's what ski-jumping is all about. You always expect the worst.
Life is good, and I'm happy, and I don't know that it would be as good if I'd been the winner in Calgary.
If you are in your sport for your country, you should be able to go to the Olympic Games and represent your sport for your country bringing people together in the interests of sport. It's a fantastic Olympic ideal, and I uphold it as much as I can.
I don't want to look like Michael Jackson.
Most people should be given a chance to compete in the Olympic Games.
Getting to the Olympic Games was my gold medal.
I've had an operation on my jaw - I don't have the big jaw anymore - and I've also had an operation on my eyes.
Americans are very much 'Win! Win! Win!' In England, we don't give a fig whether you win. It's great if you do, but we appreciate those who don't.
I wish they'd build a ski jump at the Grand Canyon; it'd be fantastic.
I had no money, no training facilities, no snow, no ski jumps, no trainer, but I still managed to ski jump for my country - and getting there was my gold medal.
When I started competing, I was so broke that I had to tie my helmet with a piece of string. On one jump, the string snapped, and my helmet carried on farther than I did. I may have been the first ski jumper ever beaten by his gear.
