Born in Worcestershire, Caroline Lucas, 63, studied at the University of Exeter where she gained a PhD in English. She joined the Green party in 1986 and went on to become leader in England and Wales from 2008 to 2012, and co-leader from 2016 to 2018. Since 2010 she has been MP for Brighton Pavilion, the UK’s first and only Green party MP. At the next election she plans to retire from parliament. Her new book, Another England: How to Reclaim Our National Story, has just been published. She is married with two sons.
When were you happiest?
Picnicking on the Downs with my family and dog – birds singing, sea sparkling, and mobile switched very firmly off.
What is your greatest fear?
Being on my deathbed and realising I’d forgotten to treat each day as the miracle that it is.
What is your earliest memory?
Being overwhelmed by the sight of my lovely older sister in a pink and green chiffon minidress with long floating sleeves on the eve of a party – she looked so beautiful and sophisticated.
Which living person do you most admire and why?
Jacinda Ardern, the former New Zealand prime minister – for embodying a different, more compassionate politics.
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
I very often set my heart on things – and if they don’t happen, I’m not great at dealing with disappointment.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Unkindness.
Describe yourself in three words
Passionate, mum, green.
What would your superpower be?
Being able to see into the future – and to change the present as a result.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
My hair in photos when I’ve forgotten the hairspray.
To whom would you most like to say sorry and why?
Today’s children and young people – we’ve let them down by not doing more to prevent the nature and climate crisis, and left them such a huge responsibility.
Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Outraged.
What is the worst job you’ve ever done?
A holiday job as a chambermaid at the Scratchwood Travelodge on the M1. The state some people leave their rooms in was a revelation.
What has been your biggest disappointment?
Not to have been joined by more Green MPs … yet.
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What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
Following the Zen proverb: you should sit and meditate for 20 minutes; if you’re too busy, then you should sit and meditate for an hour.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Winning the first Green seat in parliament – although that’s cheating, really, as it was very much a collective achievement by the whole party.
What has been your closest brush with the law?
Most recently, demonstrating against plans to accelerate the climate crisis by fracking at Balcombe, West Sussex. After a week-long court case, I and my fellow defendants were acquitted.
How would you like to be remembered?
For making a difference.
What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
People remember how you make them feel more than they remember what you say or do.
Tell us a joke
The other political parties grasp the scale of the climate and nature crises, and what’s required to prevent the end of human civilisation.
Tell us a secret
They don’t.
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