Dame Esther Rantzen has issued a heartfelt “thank you” to supporters of assisted dying, and said she hopes “the law can change as soon as possible so that everybody has the choice”. The veteran broadcaster, 85, recorded a conversation with her daughter, Rebecca Wilcox, 45, to mark the anniversary of the Commons vote which saw MPs back the principle for the first time.
Reflecting on her own health journey, she said she had been wrong to assume her lung cancer would kill her sooner. And she reiterated her wish to go to Dignitas, if necessary, when life becomes “unbearable”. Asked why the campaign for assisted dying had become so important, Dame Esther told Rebecca: “Your father was a very keen campaigner for it.
“He made documentaries with people who were desperate to have the choice — that’s all it’s about. It’s about terminally ill patients having the choice.
“So it was natural for me when I was diagnosed with stage four cancer to think: ‘Well, any moment now, I’m going to have to buzz off to Zurich’, which was a phrase I used at the time on a podcast and which seems to have appealed to people, not a lot but a bit.”
Dame Esther’s revelation in December 2023 that she had registered with Dignitas sparked a national conversation about assisted dying.
She backed an Express petition which gathered more than 200,000 signatures and forced a Westminster Hall debate, bringing the issue back to the heart of Parliament.
The That’s Life! presenter said her cancer had been “amenable to a new drug, so the tumours have shrunk”. She added: “So you and I have had a couple of Christmases we didn’t expect.
“But I know that if the time comes when I really find life unbearable, I will have to go to Zurich on my own due to the awful stupidity of the current criminal law.
“Everything I hear about the way they handle death at Dignitas makes me feel that it’s dignified and compassionate and caring, and just what I would like.”
Around 40 events are planned across the country on Saturday to mark the anniversary of the second reading vote, which set the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on the path towards becoming law.
Dame Esther also paid tribute to supporters who wrote to MPs or shared their stories publicly to make the case for change.
She said: “It’s those stories which have been so persuasive and which have made people realise that this is a crucial issue for families like you.
“When you get to my age, in my 80s, you have always lost someone you care about. And we know how important choice is at the end to preserve the best memories and stop them being overlaid by memories of suffering.
“I think your loved ones would be very proud of your courage and your determination, and we are extremely grateful to you for your commitment because without it we could never have got this far.”
Asked what gives her hope for the months ahead, Dame Esther said she was inspired by the “extraordinary courage of Kim Leadbeater”, the Labour MP who introduced the Bill.
She said: “We do need to pay tribute to her and her team, because my goodness, they’ve had abuse, opprobrium and attacks, and many obstacles thrown in their path. So thank you, Kim. I think you’ve been enormously brave.”
Advances in treatment for diseases including cancer have also brought hope, Dame Esther said.
She added: “Let’s not always assume, as I assumed, that you’re going to drop off your perch in five minutes. I was wrong about that.
“But it still means that I hope beyond hope that I can have a quick, pain-free death, ideally surrounded by people I love in my own home. If that’s not possible, in Zurich surrounded by the people who are as committed to this ideal as I am.
“I hope everybody will have this choice as soon as possible. I don’t mean you should all drop off your perches as soon as possible — sounded a bit drastic, that! What I mean is the law can change as soon as possible so that everybody has the choice.”
