Jo Brand: Which living person do you most admire, and why?

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.

Recorded Jo Brand said elsewhere, not written here

All women who slog their guts out every day, quietly getting on with bringing up their families.

The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 19 September 2015 source ↗

Others on this question

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Hans Zimmer Film composer

Sir David Attenborough, John Prendergast.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, January 2019 source ↗

Ian McEwan British novelist and screenwriter

Angela Merkel. Under attack from all sides, she tries to keep alive the dreams of a tolerant, inclusive, open society.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 18 August 2018 source ↗

Martin Freeman English actor

It’s hard to beat David Attenborough. Everything he does is quality. I like people who make me proud to be British.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 19 January 2019 source ↗

Allison Janney

My niece, Petra Janney, who got her pilot’s license to rescue animals from rural kill shelters and have them placed with different pet adoption agencies.

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