I can be a huge asshole, not very nice. Doesn’t happen very often, but when it happens, it’s not attractive.
Which trait do you most dislike in yourself?
Question
Who most deserves an apology from you, and why?
Failure & regret
Question
Which moment embarrassed you most?
Failure & regret
Question
How would you describe yourself in three words?
Identity & self
Question
What would you like to be remembered for?
Death & what remains
Question
What does love feel like?
Relationships
Question
How close have you come to death?
Death & what remains
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.
I’m so tempted to answer serial killer.
The Q&A, The Guardian, 1 February 2025 source ↗
Others on this question
View all 243 →Sometimes I follow my instincts more than my reason.
Self-centredness.
Being too damned self-absorbed.
More from Mark Steel
View profile →My kids. I think if you don’t want to say sorry to your kids you’ve been an appalling parent.
When I was 16, my dad got drunk at the Oval cricket ground and harangued Sir Garry Sobers, possibly the greatest cricketer of all time, because he didn’t agree with who he’d given as man of the match.
Should talk less.
Through a series of mistakes in write-ups, I’d like to be remembered for something like being Britain’s finest downhill skier or inventing pickled onions.
Right now, like I have no intention of going anywhere else.
When I had cancer. I was having a shave and thought: “Are you meant to have a big hard lump on one side of your neck?”
More on identity & self
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Giovanna Fletcher, Bob Schieffer, Michelle Visage, Patti LuPone, Bob Mackie, Su Pollard
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- All identity & self questions
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