Martin Scorsese: What period or moment in your life brought you the most joy?

The question

What period or moment in your life brought you the most joy?

Originally asked

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

Asked in 52 of the 131 consecutive instalments of The Guardian's The Q&A harvested on 2026-08-29.

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

Martin Scorsese

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

When my friends and I were making Mean Streets, 1973.

Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, March 2010 source ↗

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David Ajala

When I was naive to the complexities of life.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 18 October 2025 source ↗

Fay Ripley English actress, television presenter, cookbook author

When my kids had little teeth and curly hair, and hadn’t discovered the idea of wanting to leave home.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 26 November 2022 source ↗

Andrew Ridgeley

When George, Shirlie [the Wham! backing singer, whom Ridgeley dated] and I were knocking about as teenagers.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 14 December 2024 source ↗

Adeel Akhtar British actor

At boarding school, I was unable to get the main part in Hamlet, so I put on a production of The Homecoming with my friends. The teachers came to see it and said they didn’t know I had it in me. It felt very good.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 19 May 2018 source ↗

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Question Which trait in yourself do you like least? Identity & self

Laziness, wasting time. I’d like to be able to make films faster.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, March 2010 source ↗

Question If you could alter one thing about yourself, what would it be? Identity & self

First of all, I’d like to stop complaining—I’m beginning to annoy myself. I would like to learn to read faster, however. Again, the rest I’ve learned to live with.

Recorded The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, 22 February 2010 source ↗

Question What does happiness look like for you when life is going well? Identity & self

I think you can strive to attain it, but be realistic about the outcome. In the meantime, I find I might be experiencing it through flashes or brief moments in love and art, and at times just being alive.

Recorded The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, 1 March 2010 source ↗

Question What trait do you most dislike in other people? Values & belief

Actually, I dislike dealing with schedules and logistics—mine and others’.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, March 2010 source ↗

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