Esther Rantzen now ‘too physically fragile’ to end her life in Switzerland

Broadcaster, 86, had intended to end her life in Swiss clinic after being diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 2023

Esther Rantzen has said she is no longer able to travel to Switzerland to end her life because she has become “too physically fragile”.

Rantzen, who presented the TV current affairs programme That’s Life! for 21 years and founded the youth support charity Childline, had intended to end her life in a Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland after being diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 2023.

The broadcaster, 86, said in a statement on Thursday that her quality of life had deteriorated since her diagnosis, and that she was ready to end her life but was no longer able to make the journey despite having joined Dignitas about a year after learning she was terminally ill.

Rantzen said: “Unfortunately, when I was strong enough to make the flight and go to Dignitas, my life was not unbearably painful, indeed, I was able to relax in my beloved cottage in the New Forest.

“And by the time life did become unbearable, I was too physically fragile to make the journey and go through the Dignitas process.

“So even though I had spent the money and made the plans, I was not ready to end my life back then, and did not realise that would be my last chance.”

Assisted dying remains illegal in the UK, though a bill that would allow it in certain circumstances is being revisited.

Rantzen is a vocal supporter of the bill, which is due to have a second reading in parliament on Friday , and has criticised the current laws that prevent people in her situation from legally ending their lives, calling the rules “messy and cruel”.

Legalised assisted dying in the UK has been the topic of intensive debate since Kim Leadbeater’s bill was introduced to parliament in October 2024.

A June 2025 vote in the Commons saw the bill progress by 314 votes to 291, with both sides receiving votes from MPs from Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats.

If the bill passes, the UK would join European countries such as Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland, as well as Australia, Canada and the US, where it is legal in 13 states.

Advocates for the bill have claimed it will enable terminally ill people to enjoy a dignified end to their lives and allow them to die before their health declines too much.

Those against it, however, argue the criteria put forward could change after the law is passed and that the quality of palliative care could decline.