Greg James: Who alive today do you admire most, and what draws you to them?

The question

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.

Greg James

British author, broadcaster, comedian, and presenter

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

Michael Palin. He’s managed to master several disciplines. He’s also proved that being nice doesn’t mean boring.

The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 30 March 2019 source ↗

Mentioned in this answer

Aung San Suu Kyi, Caetano Veloso, Terry and Jo Harvey Allen, Ford Wheeler, Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning. My late father.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, December 2014 source ↗

Christopher and Dana Reeve. Robert and Michelle Smithdas—teachers who are both deaf and blind. Oprah Winfrey.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, October 2004 source ↗

I most admire Steve Sondheim, who is not alive anymore. But his words and music keep him alive.

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

Aside from my mom, my husband, and my mother-in-law, Gloria Steinem, Dorothy Pitman Hughes, and RBG.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, April 2020 source ↗