I lose bank cards, I’m untidy, I get bored very quickly.
Which trait do you most dislike in yourself?
Question
What is the worst thing anyone has said to you?
Failure & regret
Question
If you could edit your past, what would you change?
Failure & regret
Question
What is the worst job you have done?
Craft & work
Question
What scares you about getting older?
Time & hindsight
Question
How close have you come to death?
Death & what remains
Question
When was the last time you changed your mind about something?
Change of mind
Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
The Guardian's The Q&A has retained this Proust-derived prompt from at least 2007 through 2026, and ABC independently put it to the Obamas in 2011.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
I talk too much.
The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 May 2026 source ↗
Others on this question
View all 243 →Having no patience.
Felicity Jones
British actress
Trying to do a million things at once.
Carl Barât
English musician
Fear and all of its consequences.
More from Juliet Stevenson
View profile →I get a lot of abuse online because of my opposition to the assault on Gaza. The abuse is horrific, but I’ve learned to ignore it. The integrity of how you live your life is more important than what strangers think.
I would find a much better way of looking after my mum in her last three years of dementia. I did my best, but it was incredibly difficult to find the right kind of care unless you’ve got £3,000 a week to spend.
I worked in a supermarket on the Kings Road when I was 17, standing by the beers, wines and spirits to make sure people didn’t shoplift. They were such horrible employers that I didn’t care whether people shoplifted or not.
Not being able to run.
Many times on British roads, because I drive very fast. In another life, I would have liked doing Formula One.
I vowed never to marry, but we got married as soon as we could after lockdown. I used to think it was patriarchal but when same-sex marriage became legal, I thought: OK, great, this institution has finally changed.
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