The question
Which trait do you most dislike in yourself?Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
The Guardian's The Q&A has retained this Proust-derived prompt from at least 2007 through 2026, and ABC independently put it to the Obamas in 2011.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
When I’m feeling lazy and I sleep in too much.
Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, May 2024 source ↗
The fact that sometimes my mouth is a little too big and a little too open and sounds too much like a sailor.
When I ruin someone else’s story because I think mine is better, so butt in before they’ve finished theirs.
I’m slightly impatient.
I can be properly stubborn sometimes – but that’s me being a classic Leo.
My kids are in the house. I’ve been gardening in my vegetable garden. I have absolutely zero obligations or calls to return. Now I’m fixing dinner with music playing and having a glass of wine.
Jane Goodall. I got the chance to meet her a few years ago, and it was the thrill of a lifetime. When I was little, I wanted to be her. I thought she had the coolest life in the world.
Cruelty, and also general rudeness and unkindness. I’ve always told my children: Don’t ever find entertainment in someone else’s discomfort.
Losing a loved one.
My wedding day, and when my children were first placed in my arms.
Kindness and laughter. If someone makes me laugh, I’m halfway in love.
Sophia Loren, Antonio Banderas, Denise Welch, Meghann Fahy, Sarah Hadland, Juliet Stevenson
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