Johnny Flynn
British actor and musician
Control freakery in the kitchen.
Which trait do you most dislike in yourself?
Question
Who most deserves an apology from you, and why?
Failure & regret
Question
When was the last time you changed your mind about something?
Change of mind
Question
What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
Daily life
Question
How would you describe yourself in three words?
Identity & self
Question
Which moment embarrassed you most?
Failure & regret
Question
What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
Time & hindsight
Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
The Guardian's The Q&A has retained this Proust-derived prompt from at least 2007 through 2026, and ABC independently put it to the Obamas in 2011.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
I can always see two points of view, which makes it hard to have a row.
The Q&A, The Guardian, 4 July 2026 source ↗
Others on this question
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Jia Tolentino
Writer
the natural tendency to solidify a narrative that makes you look good
An “elastic” sense of time (fancy way of saying I am late a lot).
Courtney Pine
British jazz musician
I am not studious enough. I get easily distracted.
More from Esther Freud
View profile →Sorry is such an underrated word – I use it liberally.
Last week, when I decided to rewrite the children’s book I’ve been working on.
For the words to fly from my fingers as just occasionally they do.
Small, determined, lucky.
I bumped into an old schoolteacher and her even more ancient and deaf sister, and she shouted to her, “Remember Esther? Now she writes books … ABOUT HERSELF.”
Life’s too short to take offence.
More on identity & self
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Joyce Carol Oates, Father John Misty, Brandi Carlile, Paul McKenna, Adam Kay, Alison Steadman
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