Ardal O'Hanlon: What disappointment has stayed with you longest?

The question

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.

Ardal O'Hanlon

Irish comedian and actor

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

The day I had to stop playing football five years ago. I realised I couldn’t hack it any more.

The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 4 June 2022 source ↗

Others on this question

Viv Albertine Australian-born British musician and writer

Romantic love – what a con. (I do still believe in it.)

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 10 October 2020 source ↗

Donna Tartt American novelist and writer

I was very disappointed when I realised I was never going to be an Olympic gymnast, but that was a long time ago.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 26 October 2013 source ↗

I was very sorry to stop at two children – I would have liked to have had a third – and I am very sorry to have got divorced.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 30 March 2024 source ↗

Jacqueline Wilson English novelist

When I was in my 30s and taped myself singing. I always thought I had quite a sweet voice – my voice is terrible, I can’t hold a note.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 21 May 2022 source ↗