The question
What is the harshest thing anyone has said to you?Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
A fixed Guardian Q&A prompt asked directly across respondents and years.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
Hasn’t happened yet, it’s coming.
The Q&A, The Guardian, 11 April 2026 source ↗
Racial and homophobic slurs – the F- and N-words. When I moved to London, people screamed the F-word from their cars, and that stings.
In school, I was 11, and we had to paint a picture of family life. My painting was held up to the class and I was told it looked like a spider with ink on its feet had walked across the page. It was done so viciously – humiliating.
“Do you know what your problem is?” It was a dear friend of mine. They were referring to the fact that I’m impatient.
The music journalist Paul Morley described me as bland.
Wondering why I can’t sleep.
Showing up is at least 90% of it.
Inability to listen.
There are no more interviews.
People finding out my greatest fear.
My lack of foreign language skills.
Kate Humble, Nuala McGovern, Siobhán McSweeney, Lee Child, Edward Enninful, Richard Eyre
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