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.
“You sing like a goat.” When I did my French album [Voila], this French woman – a supposed friend – said to my face: “It’s fantastic but, how come you sound like a chèvre?” It was like someone had hit me in the stomach.
The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 4 March 2023 source ↗
I’ve heard it all: too fat, too short, no talent. Those are the things that cut me deep when I was younger, but now they drive me.
I get trolled on a daily basis so it probably involved my teeth, but that was until I learned to love my teeth.
“You don’t stand a chance of succeeding as a writer in this country. The demographics are against you.” They were wrong. The only demographic that counts is the human heart.
Some man in the street stopped me and said: “If you were a few inches taller you’d be dangerous.” I’ve no idea what he meant.
A travel agent, so I could see the world.
As a singer who did everything her way, no compromise.
Having a career that’s lasted 47 years, especially when I felt like an impostor for so many of them.
Pamela Anderson, because I love her strength and honesty and vulnerability at the same time.
On stage in Tasmania, I tripped over a floor monitor and landed on my back like a turtle, kicking my legs in the air trying to get back on my feet in front of about 5,000 people. But when I got on my feet, the whole crowd roared in triumph.
I’ve been doing pilates for 25 years and I swear by it. I decided to kit out a room with pilates equipment – and I think it’s the most expensive thing I’ve invested in.
David Hasselhoff, Adam Lambert, Fran Healy, Bryn Terfel, Chaka Khan, Michael Ball
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