There's a whole lot that goes on behind the scenes at Q that we can't possibly put on the show. Here are some of the Q team's favourite backstage memories of 2012:

1. This esteemed actor, known for his chilling portrayal of villains, arrived early for his interview, asked to use the control room computer... and proceeded to watch a variety of cat videos.

2. You heard that this musical guest flashed Cultural Hall of Shame curator Elvira Kurt. We saw it.

3. With a dramatic personal story, this Q guest received marriage proposals as a result of her interview.

4. This compact actor had the largest security team of any Q guest this year

5. This punk rock icon read his newspaper avidly...right up until the moment Jian said hello on the air.

6. A Q producer was casually asked to secure a transport truck-sized parking spot in downtown Toronto for this musical act.

7. This brooding actor caused a competition among Q producers as to who would escort him upstairs from the CBC security desk.

8. Silent and reserved in the control room, this controversial musician came alive when the backstage talk turned to his passion, professional wrestling.

9. This Oscar-winning actor turned director ignored his frantic publicists' attempts to hurry him on to the next interview.

10. Actress Kirsten Dunst unexpectedly accompanied this guest (her boyfriend) to his interview, and made a Q producer's day by sweeping her eyes up and down and saying he had "a good thing going on" with his outfit.

11. Polite, sweet, earnest...we could see no difference between this TV actor's best known character, and the guest himself.

12. This reputedly moody musical guest was nervously asked if he'd record an ID promoting Q. Instead, he asked for pen and paper, and spent nearly an hour composing a personalized song for us.