JB
When I started getting to grips with playing the guitar, aged 11.
The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 9 January 2016 source ↗
The question
When were you happiest?Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
Asked in 52 of the 131 consecutive instalments of The Guardian's The Q&A harvested on 2026-08-29.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
Others on this question
View all 585 →
Speech Debelle
Musical artist
When my album was made in June.
Bobby Womack
American singer-songwriter
When I was just singing with my brothers in our house. I was hoping I could become a success to give my mother and my father a better way of living.
Bella Freud
British fashion designer
When my son, Jimmy, was two and I was just pottering about with him.
Right now, here with you. Let’s not ruin it by talking.
More from James Bay
View profile →I couldn’t do it. I realised recently that all the things that have gone wrong are just as important as all the things that went right.
My girlfriend. I am away a lot and, as much as she understands, I’d like to say sorry for not being there.
Everything in my head.
My dad, for providing for the family for 20 years – he was a wine merchant and recently retired.
Less pizza – living on tour is not conducive to eating healthily.
My left foot. (I’m great with my right – I can bend it like Beckham.)
More on time & hindsight
- What is the most important lesson life has taught you? 155 answers
- What advice would you give your twenty-year-old self, and what should they ignore? 95 answers
- What scares you about getting older? 69 answers
- What is the best advice you have ever received? 38 answers
- What is something you were told by a parent, teacher, or mentor that you still repeat to yourself? 26 answers
- If you could have a gigantic billboard anywhere, what would it say and why? 25 answers
Also answered this
Björn Ulvaeus, Lisa Marie Presley, Billie Piper, Florence Welch, Courtney Pine, Ronnie Wood
Search the directory for somebody in particular.
Explore further
- All time & hindsight questions
- The The Q&A questionnaire — 25 questions from the same format
- Explore the archive — by field, age, era, and subject