Tim Minchin: Who alive today do you admire most, and what draws you to them?

The question

Who alive today do you admire most, and what draws you to them?

Originally asked

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

The Guardian's Q&A repeatedly uses this prompt, sometimes dropping 'living' while retaining the same comparative judgment.

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

Tim Minchin

Australian musician, writer, actor and comedian

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Maybe if we all admire her hard enough, she’ll live beyond this incredibly disturbing era.

The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 11 July 2020 source ↗

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Person Ruth Bader Ginsburg

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Steve Buscemi

Gabby Giffords. She’s a survivor of gun violence and a relentless champion of sensible gun safety measures.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, September 2025 source ↗

Maxine Peake British actress

My grandad for having the courage always to be himself.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 15 July 2011 source ↗

Ice-T American rapper and actor

Barack Obama – just for the simple fact he took the shot and went all the way to president.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 7 November 2015 source ↗

Stuart Broad English former cricketer and commentator

Sienna Miller. For obvious reasons!

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 9 February 2013 source ↗

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Question If you could revise one chapter of your past, what would you change? Failure & regret

I’d take back some dumb shit I said when I had no audience and found that being shocking made people laugh.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 11 July 2020 source ↗

Question How would you describe what love feels like to you? Relationships

Anxiety, mostly, once you have kids.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 11 July 2020 source ↗

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

Maybe when my wife Sarah and I were walking back to our hotel in Covent Garden, London, through the snow after the Olivier awards when Matilda won all the stuff. Hold on, I’m meant to say the birth of my children, aren’t I?

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 11 July 2020 source ↗

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Kelsey Grammer, Jennifer Hudson, Reggie Yates, Jessica Hynes, Billie Piper, Nicholas Hoult

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