Russell Mael: What did you want to be when you were growing up?

What did you want to be when you were growing up?

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.

Recorded Russell Mael said elsewhere, not written here

A pearl diver in Japan.

The Q&A, The Guardian, 24 May 2025 source ↗

Others on this question

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Fearne Cotton

An air steward, because I loved airports. I wrote a letter to British Airways when I was seven and I’ve got the reply in the loft, which says, “You’re a bit young at seven but do stay in touch.” I was that kind of kid who was eager to start the ball rolling.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 7 March 2026 source ↗

Anna Paquin New Zealand actress

I already had a career when I was growing up.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 27 July 2019 source ↗

James Blunt Singer, songwriter and musician

A lawyer. I did work experience and was sent to the public gallery at the high court. The man in the dock was a 50-year-old accused of buggering a cat on the Metropolitan line. I decided to become a musician instead.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 13 November 2021 source ↗

Rosanna Arquette American actress