No job

I applied for a job last week and got an interview. Needless to say, I did not get it. This was minimum wage temp position in retail. Since I have 10 years experience in that line of work, I can only assume I was turned down due to my 'personality'. In other words, I'm a sick weirdo who should not be let near other people.

What mistakes did I make? Was it mentioning my depression? I had to, as it's hard to explain the fact I've not worked for 16 months due to being on incapacity benefit any other way.

If I can't get these kinds of jobs, it'll be unlikely I'll ever work again. Eventually, I'll have to apply for more benefits, and thus end up being periodically abused by some target-chasing civil servants who would sooner have me starve than cost the state any more money.

When I had gaps in my resume, I always said I was "working on personal projects" during that time :-) You could explain your 16 months that way. What one person hiring thinks/believes and what their company quotas or needs are, etc. isn't the same as another; I'd try several more times until you find a job. It can often just be clicking with the interviewer enough and could be you're "out of practice" with interviewing, and more interviews will get you back up to speed so you can land a job.