Andrea Bocelli: How close have you come to dying? — FLAPSS

The question

How close have you come to dying?

Originally asked

The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A

A recurring Guardian Q&A prompt asked directly across respondents and years.

You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.

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Andrea Bocelli

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

As a young man I had a car accident on a foggy night that left the vehicle looking like a squashed box, even though, by some miracle, I walked away unscathed.

The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 November 2024 source ↗

Others on this question

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Bertie Carvel British actor

I held my mother’s hand as she passed away.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 30 October 2021 source ↗

Martin Kemp English musician and actor

In 1995, I discovered I had two brain tumours. The process of having them removed went on for about three years. It was a long and drawn-out time, wondering whether or not I was going to die.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 14 July 2018 source ↗

A picnic on the beach at Seaforth during the war. Somehow I managed to wriggle through a barbed-wire fence and run across a minefield. My teenage aunt Kat bravely followed suit and rescued me.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 10 January 2026 source ↗

When I was drinking, there were many times when I was out for the night and didn’t come back for a week.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 7 December 2024 source ↗

More from Andrea Bocelli

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Question What do you believe happens when we die? Death & what remains

Earthly life is merely the infancy of our soul. What comes after physical death is, I imagine, like returning home.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 November 2024 source ↗

Question As a child, what career or life did you imagine for yourself? Identity & self

A singer. I wanted to live off music ever since I was a child – a wish that came true when I was over 35 years old.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 November 2024 source ↗

Question What trait do you most dislike in other people? Values & belief

Lack of humility, the absence of goodness.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 November 2024 source ↗

Question Who deserves an apology from you, and for what? Failure & regret

My father, with whom I had a complex relationship: often, when I was young, his desire to protect me clashed with the stubbornness of my choices.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 November 2024 source ↗

Question What period or moment in your life brought you the most joy? Time & hindsight

When each of my three children was born.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 November 2024 source ↗

Question Who alive today do you admire most, and what draws you to them? Values & belief

The many nuns and priests who often work in the shadows, dedicating their lives to the service of others.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 November 2024 source ↗

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