Martin Clunes
English actor
On childhood family holidays in Mallorca, with my mum, dad and sister, Amanda.
When were you happiest?
Question
What is the worst job you have done?
Craft & work
Question
What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Identity & self
Question
How close have you come to death?
Death & what remains
Question
What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
Daily life
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.
In my 20s, touring small arts centres with my best mate, performing sketch comedy to a handful of people.
The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 27 October 2018 source ↗
Others on this question
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Richard Wilson
Scottish actor and theatre director
In my early 20s. I did my national service late, in Singapore. It was liberating to be in a new culture.
Simon Callow
British actor
At drama school, because I started having relationships with other men and found a satisfying job.
Anna Paquin
New Zealand actress
I don’t think there’s a single moment. Every day that you wake up and your family is healthy and OK is a daily gratitude and happiness for me.
More from Sue Perkins
View profile →Cleaning toilets in a hotel in Croydon when I was 16. A guest once gave me a half-eaten bag of pistachios as a tip, so there were perks.
An eye surgeon. I had an operation on my cornea when I was little, and remember being deeply enamoured with the team who looked after me. Subsequently, I was very disappointed to learn that a degree of scientific aptitude was required for the job, which ruled me out.
Anna dared me to jump off a cliff in Menorca on holiday a couple of years ago. I did. I fell 30m through the air, hit the water at an odd angle and shattered my coccyx.
Not accepting every dare.
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