Niamh Cusack
Irish actress
A saint. Then a ballerina.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 October 2021 source ↗
What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Question
What would you like to be remembered for?
Death & what remains
Question
What most recently made you cry?
Identity & self
Question
Aside from a property, what is the most expensive thing you have bought?
Money & investment
Question
What has been your biggest disappointment?
Failure & regret
Question
When were you happiest?
Time & hindsight
Question
If you could edit your past, what would you change?
Failure & regret
Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
This is a standing question in The Guardian's decades-long The Q&A and also recurs independently in career and life interviews.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
I wanted to be like my dad, who was an academic, because he had an office packed full of books, always had loud music on, and seemed to get to do what he wanted.
The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 5 February 2022 source ↗
Others on this question
View all 191 →
Viv Albertine
Australian-born British musician and writer
I had no female role models growing up. I lived an incredibly sheltered life: there was no TV at home and we had no visitors. It wasn’t until rock and pop came into my life that I concocted myself as a role model.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 10 October 2020 source ↗
A fighter pilot.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 21 March 2026 source ↗
Rachel Whiteread
English artist
First something medical, then, without any doubt, an artist.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 December 2017 source ↗
More from Lauren Laverne
View profile →I’d rather be enjoyed while I am still here.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 5 February 2022 source ↗
The Strictly Come Dancing final almost destroyed me. I was howling all the way through – John and Johannes and then Rose and Giovanni. Oh my God.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 5 February 2022 source ↗
A caravan. I was brought up going on caravan holidays – but we quickly realised that a double-axle caravan was too much of a commitment and sold it.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 5 February 2022 source ↗
My biggest disappointment is always myself. That’s my Catholic upbringing.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 5 February 2022 source ↗
There are different flavours of happy, but I think my favourite is the quiet contentment when several generations of family are sitting together watching a crowd-pleaser like Harry Potter on the telly.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 5 February 2022 source ↗
It would have been lovely to have grown up in private like a lot of my friends.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 5 February 2022 source ↗
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