Paul O'Grady: How close have you come to dying?

The question

How close have you come to dying?

Originally asked

The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A

A recurring Guardian Q&A prompt asked directly across respondents and years.

You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.

Paul O'Grady

British comedian, actor and television presenter

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

I had a bad heart attack 20 years ago: I think I slid off the mortal coil for about 30 seconds.

The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 27 November 2021 source ↗

Others on this question

View all 209 →

Shaun Ryder English singer

I had a gun shoved in my eyeball in New York by a crack dealer in the 1980s. I have also watched somebody next to me get shot in the head in a gun battle – that was in Jamaica in the early 1990s.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 5 August 2017 source ↗

Emily Mortimer British actress

Giving birth is much more treacherous than people let on.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 31 October 2020 source ↗

Walton Goggins

After a significant traumatic experience when I was looking for reasons to stay alive.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 10 May 2025 source ↗

Ronnie Wood English rock musician

I can dodge the bullets – I’m lucky.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 16 September 2017 source ↗

More from Paul O'Grady

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Question What most recently moved you to tears? Identity & self

When I watched a series called Pose. The hospital scenes took me right back to when we were going through the Aids years. It’s the same with It’s a Sin.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 27 November 2021 source ↗

Question What period or moment in your life brought you the most joy? Time & hindsight

When I hit 30 and managed to get a council flat in London. It was in the most terrible state, but it was bliss to have a flat of my own.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 27 November 2021 source ↗

Question Excluding property, what is the most expensive thing you have ever bought? Money & investment

I had a midlife crisis and paid 70 grand for a Morgan AeroMax which looked just like Cruella de Vil’s car. I was in a permanent state of terror and soon sold it.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 27 November 2021 source ↗