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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.

NM
Naga Munchetty
Recorded said elsewhere, not written here
I was 17 and about to go on a first date with my first boyfriend. I was so desperate for my mum not to meet him that I was trying to get to the door before she did. I ran down the stairs as she opened it, and slid down the last five steps on my arse.

The Q&A, The Guardian, 12 July 2025 source ↗

Others on this question

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Seann Walsh
At school, I got my head stuck in a balustrade on the stairs at lunchtime. I had pupils laughing at me, parents laughing at me, teachers laughing at me and eventually, at the end of the day, the fire brigade laughing at me.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 31 January 2026 source ↗
Shakin' Stevens Welsh rock and roll singer and songwriter
I was in the musical Elvis, and after a costume change I went below stage to be raised up on a platform. As I was raised up, I blanked and couldn’t remember the first line of the song King Creole. I mumbled the first few lines and hoped nobody would notice.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 18 February 2023 source ↗
Meghan Trainor American singer-songwriter
When I was 11, I went down a water slide and my bottoms didn’t go with me. Everyone saw my bare white butt.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 15 June 2024 source ↗
Russell Mael
Signing away the rights to my life story to a major motion-picture company for a sum that I have since been told was way below the market rate.
Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 24 May 2025 source ↗

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