Failure & regret

What has been your biggest disappointment?

369 answers answered between 1995 and 2026 one of 25 in The Q&A

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.

Add your answer

On the record

Public figures who have answered a question like this elsewhere. Quoted from the source shown, not written for FLAPSS.

Read by field Everyone Science and medicine 2 Arts and letters 310 Politics and public life 25 Business and finance 11 Technology 1 Sport 19
Read by age Any age Before thirty 16 In their thirties 58 In their forties 82 In their fifties 81 In their sixties 73 Seventy and beyond 54
Order Earliest first Most recent Surprise me
Mo Farah British track and field athlete
Beijing 2008 – not making the Olympic final.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 27 April 2019 source ↗
Kevin Pietersen English cricketer
The way I left English cricket. I was scapegoated for the Ashes tour in 2013-14 and there was a bitter battle between the England Cricket Board and me for a few years.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 8 June 2019 source ↗
Andy Murray British professional tennis player, 2005–2024
Professionally, when I lost my first Wimbledon final. I am also disappointed I didn’t learn Spanish when I lived there.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 6 July 2019 source ↗
Bradley Wiggins British former professional road and track racing cyclist
Never going back to the Tour de France and trying to win again.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 21 September 2019 source ↗

1 answer from members

Not being able to start my own company

More on failure & regret