The question
When were you most embarrassed?Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
A verbatim recurring question in The Guardian's Q&A series.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
Being torn to shreds by a very elderly woman for driving badly on the Isle of Man, maybe 15 years ago. She stopped in the middle of the road and really let me have it.
The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 19 October 2024 source ↗
I recently had a dramatic fall on stage in Hungary. It was a massive stage – I was miles away from the audience – and I didn’t expect there to be two monitors in the middle of it. I went completely arse over tit and landed on my chin. First, I felt shock, pain, embarrassment, and then I felt lucky that I didn’t break any teeth or bite through my tongue. I asked for an ice pack for my chin, got up and finished the set.
I once found myself chatting to a big handsome bloke at a party in Oslo. I said, “And what do you do?” “Well,” he said, “I am the king.” Being a great wordsmith, I zinged back, “Oh. Errm. Cool.”
At a fashion show after-party in New York in 2004, my friend dared me to push her into the pool. I did, and you’ve never heard laughter die so quickly.
Bumping into my male boss at a nudist beach.
As an optimist.
“You’ll never do well as an actor unless you change your name.” I’m not going to say who.
The different areas of global catastrophe.
It’s actually people knowing how fearful I am.
To do the very best you can and then let it go.
Still to come, I think.
Sofia Coppola, Rita Wilson, Rosie Jones, Paapa Essiedu, Craig Charles, Olly Alexander
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