Mary J Blige
American singer and actress
Myself, for having such a lack of love for myself at times.
What has been your biggest disappointment?
Question
Who most deserves an apology from you, and why?
Failure & regret
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What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
Daily life
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How close have you come to death?
Death & what remains
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What is the worst job you have done?
Craft & work
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Aside from a property, what is the most expensive thing you have bought?
Money & investment
Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
This exact question recurs in The Guardian's institutional Q&A pool.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
At the time, losing our business, home and all our possessions in 1991 after the failure of our jewellery company. But if that had not happened then other good things would not have happened, either.
The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 5 May 2018 source ↗
Others on this question
View all 369 →Realising I was never going to make it big in professional swing dance.
Adeel Akhtar
British actor
After I got arrested, my dad, a lawyer, took me to a QC to try to build a case against the FBI. The dejection on his face when it became obvious that we couldn’t was disappointing.
Paul Giamatti
American actor
This year? Losing to François Englert and Pete Higgs. I truly thought I had that in the bag.
More from Monty Don
View profile →My children. I was away an awful lot when they were little and not very good at being a father when I was around. I could have done better.
Getting my 21-year-old knees back.
Despite a stroke, cancer as a child and various dramas with chainsaws and tractors, the closest was probably when I choked on a lamb chop 25 years ago. Sarah performed the Heimlich manoeuvre and the lamb shot out.
I once had to dig a fire escape from a basement in a health club. It took two weeks.
A tractor, 12 years ago. Bright yellow and still brilliant.
More on failure & regret
- Who most deserves an apology from you, and why? 209 answers
- If you could edit your past, what would you change? 205 answers
- What is the worst thing anyone has said to you? 124 answers
- Which moment embarrassed you most? 124 answers
- How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? Do you have a favourite failure? 77 answers
- What is the hardest thing that has happened to you, and what did you carry out of it? 39 answers
Also answered this
Nora Ephron, Marian Keyes, Irvine Welsh, Viv Albertine, Rose Tremain, Tony Ross
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