Dame Esther Rantzen, the broadcaster and founder of Childline, has been laid to rest in a private funeral last week, her family has confirmed. She died at her home in the New Forest on 30 September at the age of 86, after being diagnosed with stage four lung cancer in 2023.
Her daughter, Rebecca Wilcox, described the funeral as "incredibly beautiful" and told the Press Association that the family had been "hugely comforting to know that people around the world felt the same way about her as we did". A larger memorial service is expected to take place at a later date, with details yet to be announced.
Dame Esther had become a prominent advocate for assisted dying in her final years. Her family has now published a note she wrote before her death, in which she thanked those who campaigned on the issue and urged them to "battle on".
In the note, she wrote: "It would have transformed the way I died if the law had allowed me to ask for assistance to die when my life had become unbearable. Not because I would have used that choice. But because the last days and weeks would have been infused with the hope and confidence of a swift, pain-free death and my family would not have had to witness any suffering or lack of dignity and privacy at the end."
She added: "I was extremely lucky because I had the talent, skill and support of my local Oakhaven Hospice. But I was still deprived of any choice over my own death by the current messy criminal law."
Dame Esther confirmed that she had become "too physically frail to take the flight" to an assisted dying clinic in Switzerland, thanking the Dignitas team for their help. "A combination of my terminal illness and the cruel law frustrated them and me," she wrote.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, introduced in the UK Parliament in 2024, failed to become law before her death. Dame Esther acknowledged this, writing: "Now I am dead I am sorry that there is not much more I can do to speed it on its way for the sake of other future generations."
Addressing opponents of assisted dying, she wrote: "Rest assured I will not come back to haunt you, I have better things to do and anyway I believe you too have the right to choose, but not the right to impose your choice on the most vulnerable people such as dying frail little old ladies like me."
To supporters, she wrote: "I will do everything I can from here to help you. After all, nobody wants to shorten life, just to shorten death."
The family has asked that anyone wishing to pay tribute make donations to Oakhaven Hospice, Childline, The Silver Line and Cats Protection.