On tour during Christmas vacation at Cambridge with its European Theatre Group, playing Shakespeare. I knew it was the best time of my life.
When were you happiest?
Question
What song would you like played at your funeral?
Death & what remains
Question
What would you like to be remembered for?
Death & what remains
Question
Who most deserves an apology from you, and why?
Failure & regret
Question
What has been your biggest disappointment?
Failure & regret
Question
How close have you come to death?
Death & what remains
Question
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Craft & work
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.
When I was 15, I went to a rugby match at Twickenham with my dad and we went back to his friend Hugh’s house and Hugh made me a perfect cup of tea. I just remember feeling really happy because it was such a brilliant day and I loved being with my dad.
The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 25 January 2020 source ↗
Others on this question
View all 577 →
Brenda Blethyn
British actress
I hope that time hasn't come yet.
Johnny Flynn
British actor and musician
When I was about eight, by a river waiting for my dad to finish fishing, eating a Mars bar, drinking a can of Coke and listening to Beat It by Michael Jackson on my Walkman. I remember feeling I couldn’t be happier.
I remember going to my auntie Pauline’s house in winter when I was eight or nine and she made me a roast beef sandwich. I ate it and fell asleep next to a fire. I felt like a cat, fed and left to nap.
More from Gemma Whelan
View profile →I want people to really, really cry so The Lark Ascending by Vaughan Williams.
It would be lovely if people thought I was kind.
To my husband for all the huffing and puffing.
The fans’ reaction at the end of Game Of Thrones because I think it was brilliant.
I was very ill with anorexia when I was a teenager. I went into hospital voluntarily, otherwise they were going to section me.
Recovering from anorexia.
More on time & hindsight
- What is the most important lesson life has taught you? 137 answers
- What advice would you give your twenty-year-old self, and what should they ignore? 77 answers
- What scares you about getting older? 61 answers
- What is the best advice you have ever received? 28 answers
- If you could have a gigantic billboard anywhere, what would it say and why? 23 answers
- What is something you were told by a parent, teacher, or mentor that you still repeat to yourself? 22 answers
Also answered this
Viggo Mortensen, Steve Coogan, David Oyelowo, Shirley MacLaine, Chloë Sevigny, Alan Dale
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