I once did a record store signing in LA, which I had no business doing. No one was there – just staff. They were getting ready to close the shop and sweeping up.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 26 August 2023 source ↗
failure
Which moment embarrassed you most?
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Forty-eight hours after giving birth, I sent a picture that someone had sent me of their baby to a WhatsApp group, thinking it was my son (they kind of looked similar). Mortifying.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 11 November 2023 source ↗
At the TV Baftas last year I was wearing these heels that had stiff bows on the front. One heel locked into the other bow and I went arse over tit.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 10 February 2024 source ↗
I once asked a young woman if she had ever heard of the musician Laura Marling, insinuating I knew Laura Marling, to which she replied: “I am Laura Marling.”
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 23 March 2024 source ↗
Falling flat on my face in Billy Elliot on Boxing Day when I was 14. I fell smack bang at the end of my number. I was mortified.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 21 December 2024 source ↗
Helen Mirren was in the elevator with me at the National Theatre. She pressed the button but it didn’t move. I said, “Fancy seeing you here and being stuck in an elevator.” And she said, “Was that meant to be funny?” I apologised, and she laughed. Even talking about it now, it feels so awkward and embarrassing.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 18 October 2025 source ↗
One of the first TV appearances that our band made in America, on the Craig Ferguson show. I forgot the lyrics to Little Lion Man and then broke two strings.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 21 February 2026 source ↗
When my trousers split on stage in Burn the Floor in Australia. I had always been warned to wear my flesh underwear and I did not that day.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 28 March 2026 source ↗
In my 20s I was in a show called The Unauthorised Autobiography of Samantha Brown. The actor who played my dad messed up his lines and it made me laugh so hard that I ended up peeing my pants.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 25 April 2026 source ↗
Congratulating Dua Lipa on managing to release a single in such a tough industry, because I thought she was a struggling indie artist. I Googled her the next day and realised that she has 88 million followers.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 9 May 2026 source ↗
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