Failure & regret

Who most deserves an apology from you, and why?

209 answers answered between 1998 and 2026 one of 25 in The Q&A

Originally asked

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

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

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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 1 Arts and letters 178 Politics and public life 13 Business and finance 5 Sport 12
Read by age Any age Before thirty 4 In their thirties 37 In their forties 46 In their fifties 47 In their sixties 40 Seventy and beyond 32
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Mike Skinner English rapper
To my dad for not making it back to Birmingham to see him while I was in London doing The Streets.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 24 January 2009 source ↗
Sara Pascoe English comedian, presenter, writer
I didn’t learn to be intimate with people until I was in my 20s, so I was a very bad friend in my teens. There was a girl I was best friends with at college; I always used to kiss the boys she liked. I’d like to apologise to her.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 28 July 2018 source ↗
Nish Kumar British stand-up comedian and presenter
Most of the people that saw me do comedy between the years 2007 and 2012.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 February 2019 source ↗
Greg James British author, broadcaster, comedian, and presenter
The person who had to empty the bin on that train to Oxford.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 30 March 2019 source ↗
Kate Nash British musician
Everyone I ever met in 2007, because I was definitely about two hours late.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 25 May 2019 source ↗
Michelle Dockery British actress
A teacher at my secondary school. We used to write and sing songs about him. Sorry, Sir! You were a great teacher.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 4 January 2020 source ↗
Alice Eve British actress
To all my teachers – I’m sorry I thought class was a paying audience.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 18 April 2020 source ↗
Clara Amfo Broadcaster
I never said it out loud, but I had this “Why aren’t you like the other mums?” energy towards my mum. Now I am an adult, I am happy that she came here from Ghana and remained who she was, but for a long time I resented her.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 29 August 2020 source ↗
Riz Ahmed British actor and rapper
Some of my teachers. I was a bit of a handful as a kid. They were just trying to do their job and I made it very difficult.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 10 April 2021 source ↗
Mo Gilligan British comedian
Some of my old teachers for disrupting lessons. I was the class clown.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 November 2021 source ↗
Vick Hope British television and radio presenter
My younger self. I told myself so often that I was not good enough, that I was not smart enough, that I was not interesting enough, that I was boring and ugly. I wasn’t kind to my body, and I did and said things to myself that I would never do or say to a friend.
Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 6 August 2022 source ↗

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