Olly Alexander
English singer and actor
I can be an overthinker and a vicious self-critic.
Which trait do you most dislike in yourself?
Question
When were you happiest?
Time & hindsight
Question
What keeps you awake at night?
Daily life
Question
Which moment embarrassed you most?
Failure & regret
Question
What would you like to be remembered for?
Death & what remains
Question
What is the worst job you have done?
Craft & work
Question
How close have you come to death?
Death & what remains
Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
The Guardian's The Q&A has retained this Proust-derived prompt from at least 2007 through 2026, and ABC independently put it to the Obamas in 2011.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
I can’t cook. I use my smoke alarm as a timer.
The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 22 June 2024 source ↗
Others on this question
View all 243 →I get distracted by anything and everything, so all my projects finish just before the deadline. Sometimes, it’s a bit too tight.
Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen
English interior designer and television personality
I am crucified by my modesty: it’s terrible.
Feeling and being unfocused.
More from Kathy Lette
View profile →When the book of my enemy was discounted.
Worrying about the faux pas I made earlier that evening. I tend to suffer from foot-in-mouth disease.
Bumping into my male boss at a nudist beach.
As a writer who championed women with grit and wit.
Bedpan emptier in a hospital.
Hitchhiking across Australia as a teenager, relying on the kindness of passing serial killers.
More on identity & self
Also answered this
Zadie Smith, Danielle Steel, Rose Tremain, Julian Clary, Jane Asher, John Grisham
Search the directory for somebody in particular.
Explore further
- All identity & self questions
- The The Q&A questionnaire — 25 questions from the same format
- Explore the archive — by field, age, era, and subject