Dame Esther Rantzen has died at the age of 86 at her home in the New Forest, leaving behind a farewell note to friends and supporters. The broadcaster, who was diagnosed with lung cancer in January 2023 and later announced her condition had reached stage four, had been a prominent voice in the campaign to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales.
Farewell message
In her final message, Dame Esther wrote: "Dear Everybody, I am so sorry I cannot send you each individual thanks for the fun, the support and the help you have been to me. I have been immensely lucky in the friendship and the professional advice I have had from you which has enabled me to live such a long and happy life."
She added: "If any of you would like to donate something to charity in my name as a celebration of what we have had together, I do know that the Dignitas charity in Switzerland is facing serious challenges and would be very grateful. And the Oakhaven Hospice in Lymington has also been wonderful to me. And Cathy would like me to pay tribute to Cats Protection of course."
She concluded: "Sadly, all good things come to an end, as they say. So I particularly wanted to say goodbye and thank you so very, very much. Perhaps I will see you eventually, on the other side. I do hope so. With very good wishes, as ever, Esther."
Children's tribute
Her children, Miriam Wilcox, Rebecca Wilcox and Joshua Wilcox, who she shared with Desmond Wilcox, released a touching tribute to their "adored mother". They said: "Our adored mother Dame Esther Rantzen died today. Her legacy of compassion and understanding will live on in her charities Childline and the Silverline, and through those of us who were lucky enough to love and be loved by her.
"We are grateful she is finally at rest with her beloved husband, Desmond Wilcox, but we will miss her immeasurably. She was our sunshine. We will always remember her endless capacity for joy, her ability to comfort every heartache, her beautiful way with words and her expert guidance in all things."
They continued: "She was the most wonderful mother to us three children and a cherished grandmother to her five treasured grandchildren. We have been so lucky for so long, no matter how much time we had with Mum it could be never be enough, but we are so grateful for our lives together. Mum’s work with charities and campaigning, particularly for children, older people, and the terminally ill, meant the world to her so thank you to everyone who has written to her, shared their stories with her over the years and worked alongside her.
"We hope the humour, ingenuity and audacity she brought to her work may continue to inspire you as it will do us. We kindly ask that we are given privacy and time to grieve."
Assisted dying campaign
Dame Esther had joined the assisted dying clinic Dignitas in Switzerland and was considering travelling to Zurich, where assisted dying is legal, if treatment did not work. However, in an interview earlier this month, she admitted she was "too physically fragile to make the journey" to Dignitas. She was speaking ahead of an MPs vote on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, and she pleaded with those in power to vote in favour of legalising the bill for England and Wales.
The Bill would allow terminally ill people in England and Wales with fewer than six months to live to have an assisted death, subject to approval by doctors and legal professionals. It passed two votes in the Commons in 2024 and 2025 but ran out of time in the Lords in April. It was subsequently reintroduced by Labour MP Lauren Edwards and is now set to go through the process once more, where initially MPs vote on the Second Reading of the Bill before it then goes through Parliament for further consideration by MPs and peers in the House of Lords.
Dame Esther admitted wanting an assisted death put her family and friends in a difficult position. She told Radio 4: "They would want to go with me. The police might prosecute them. My family say it’s my choice. I explained to them that I don’t want their last memories of me to be painful. If you watch someone you love having a bad death, that memory obliterates all the happy times."
