In the 1950s I went to the Chelsea Arts Club’s New Year’s Eve ball at the Royal Albert Hall dressed as a Christmas pudding, with swimming trunks under my costume and holly in my hair.
Which moment embarrassed you most?
Question
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Failure & regret
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Failure & regret
Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
A verbatim recurring question in The Guardian's Q&A series.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
I’ve never seen Star Wars (I know!) and on my first day of a recent job, I’m sitting next to this very friendly actor. I ask if he has much experience with motion capture. He says, “Yes.” I say “Oh great! What have you worked on?” He says, “I’m Mark Hamill.”
The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 25 May 2024 source ↗
Others on this question
View all 122 →Passing wind on camera. I was doing a rather large movie and it was a closeup.
Being an actor is inherently embarrassing. You have to embrace it.
I have a deep-rooted fear of being in trouble. I once tried to sneak into the back of a photography exhibition with my husband when one of our kids was in a pushchair. We’d arrived late and he suggested we go in through the gift shop and see the last room. As we poked our heads round the door, the security guard noticed us. I shouted, “That man’s trying to get in!”, then ran away.
More from Eleanor Tomlinson
View profile →Relief and an achy feeling in your cheeks from smiling.
Endless acting jobs.
A few of my exes.
Talk to people. Learn from them. And put your phone away.
Narcissism. And people coughing on me in public.
Losing out on a role, any role. I get so invested. I can take rejection, but only when useful feedback is given.
More on failure & regret
- What has been your biggest disappointment? 219 answers
- Who most deserves an apology from you, and why? 209 answers
- If you could edit your past, what would you change? 203 answers
- What is the worst thing anyone has said to you? 122 answers
- How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? Do you have a favourite failure? 61 answers
- What is the hardest thing that has happened to you, and what did you carry out of it? 36 answers
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