Q&A

MY BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT?
LEARNING THAT LOVE DOES NOT CONQUER EVERYTHING.

When were you the happiest?
When I was a child.
What is your greatest fear?
That something bad could happen to my daughter.
What is your earliest memory?
I was two years old and was at the park with my dad. I was playing a game of going towards him with my eyes closed. On that day I was taken to A&E to have my forehead stitched.
Which living person do you most admire and why?
Isabell Allende. Because she is talented, has a great sense of humour, is strong and beautiful.
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Prolixity.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Not admitting to being wrong.
What was your most embarrassing moment?
Why would I want to talk about it?
What is your most treasured possession?
Old family photos and a recording my step dad made of me telling him a story when I was three years old.
Where would you like to live?
In the present.
What makes you unhappy?
Injustice.
What would your superpower be?
Flying.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
My eyes. Long story.
What is your favourite book?
Whichever I am reading at the moment I’m asked. So, now it’s The Double, by Dostoevsky
What would be your fancy dress costume of choice?
Something glamorous, to contrast with the everyday me.
What is your guiltiest pleasure?
TV.
What does love feel like?
Ease.
Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Like...
What is the worst job you’ve done?
Waitressing, serving lovely canapés on beautiful, but incredibly heavy trays. Wearing a tie.
What has been your biggest disappointment?
Learning that love does not conquer everything.
When did you last cry and why?
A few days ago, because I needed it.
How often do you have sex?
Often enough.
What is the closest you’ve come to death?
When I was a baby. For a while doctors didn’t know what I had...
What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
More sunshine.
What keeps you awake at night?
Lists of things to do.
How would you like to be remembered?
As someone who cared.
What is the most important lesson life has thought you?
Every day counts and (almost) everything can wait.
Where would you most like to be now?
On a sunny, sandy, warm beach with my husband, daughter and a good, and thick, book.

(Me auto-entrevistei para o Guardian. Para a revista Weekend, que sai aos sábados)