values

Which living person do you most admire, and why?

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.

One of 24 questions in The Q&A here.

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On the record

Public figures who have answered a question like this elsewhere. Quoted from the source shown, not written for FLAPSS.

Read by field Everyone Arts and letters 34 Politics and public life 4
Read by age Any age In their thirties 8 In their forties 4 In their fifties 11 In their sixties 6 Seventy and beyond 9
Barack Obama 44th President of the United States, 2009–2017; United States Senator from Illinois 2005–2008
People ask me sometimes, who inspires you, Mr. President? Those quiet heroes all across this country -- some of your parents and grandparents who are sitting here -- no fanfare, no articles written about them, they just persevere. They just do their jobs. They meet their responsibilities. They don't quit. I'm only here because of them. They may not have set out to change the world, but in small, important ways, they did. They certainly changed mine.

Recorded Barnard College, New York City, The White House (Obama administration archive), 14 May 2012 source ↗

Sam Ryder
Brian May, because of his love of wildlife and love of music. He’s a kind, gentle soul.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 26 August 2023 source ↗

Midge Ure
Carol Vorderman, because she’s stuck her head above the parapet to try to hold our bizarre politicians to account.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 September 2023 source ↗

Corinne Bailey Rae
My mum, for the way that she brought up her three children and managed to make her money work. She worked as a cleaner for all these families we went to church with. She would cycle there with my little sister on the back of her bike – we didn’t have a car. She had an amazing mind for planning and organising so that we got to do ballet, we went to Brownies.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 23 September 2023 source ↗

PP Arnold
Oprah Winfrey, as Maya Angelou and Tina Turner are no longer with us. These women are Afro-American queens who, despite growing up in the racist south experiencing physical, emotional and sexual abuse, rose to the top of their professions and are an inspiration to women everywhere.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 7 October 2023 source ↗

Denise Welch
My husband, Lincoln, for getting sober with me. He turned his own life around to turn mine around. We didn’t do AA, we anchored each other.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 December 2023 source ↗

Michelle Visage
Madonna, she is a trailblazer. She changed the face of pop music for women. She did so much for the Aids movement, encouraging people to vote and the voices of LGBTQIA+ people. Fashion icon, music icon – she deserves all the credit.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 January 2024 source ↗

Esther Rantzen
Alan Bates, Lord Arbuthnot and Nick Wallis for exposing the Post Office and Fujitsu and, let’s hope, for ensuring everyone is properly compensated.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 17 February 2024 source ↗

Caroline Lucas
Jacinda Ardern, the former New Zealand prime minister – for embodying a different, more compassionate politics.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 April 2024 source ↗

Andrea Bocelli
The many nuns and priests who often work in the shadows, dedicating their lives to the service of others.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 November 2024 source ↗

Douglas Booth
My friend Josie Naughton, the co‑founder and CEO of the charity Choose Love, which supports refugees and displaced people. She left her job working for Coldplay to dedicate her life to this cause.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 15 February 2025 source ↗

Charles Collingwood
Freddie Flintoff. He played cricket in the best spirit and in his series Field of Dreams, you could see the boys hanging on his every word. He’s a special guy.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 8 March 2025 source ↗

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