Sarah Hadland: Who alive today do you admire most, and what draws you to them?

The question

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

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.

Sarah Hadland

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

Lemn Sissay. What happened to him and what he’s done with his life is extraordinary.

The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 December 2025 source ↗

Mentioned in this answer

Person Lemn Sissay

Others on this question

View all 407 →

Rafael Nadal Spanish professional tennis player, 2001–2024

Just normal people from my hometown, from my country.

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

Richard Bacon English television and radio presenter

Sheryl Sandberg at Facebook.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 29 August 2015 source ↗

Ivan Lendl Czech and American tennis player

People who have done really well in their sports: in tennis, Steffi Graf; in ice hockey, Wayne Gretzky.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 15 July 2017 source ↗

Stephen Fry Actor, writer and broadcaster

Probably Daniel Barenboim. His blend of insane talent, intellect, and profound humanitarianism is one that comes along very, very rarely. I would put Martina Navratilova and Stephen Sondheim in a tie for second.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, June 2015 source ↗

More from Sarah Hadland

View profile →

Question As a child, what career or life did you imagine for yourself? Identity & self

A missionary in Africa – I think that was Sunday school-based.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 December 2025 source ↗

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

Laziness, lack of empathy, lack of humour.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 December 2025 source ↗

Question What is the worst job you have ever had? Craft & work

Magician’s assistant on a cruise ship for two weeks when I was 19. When I was meant to be being levitated, I was silently crying while pretending to be unconscious as I hung limply off a metal pole. It was bleak.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 December 2025 source ↗

Question When were you most embarrassed? Failure & regret

Years ago, I was trying to get with one of the big agencies and I cobbled together a VHS tape of me in adverts and sobbing in The Bill, and took it United Agents for the attention of Dallas Smith. A week later I went back and said, “Has she looked at the tape?” And they were, like, “Dallas is a he, no he hasn’t and he doesn’t want to,” and handed it back to me.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 December 2025 source ↗