Humanists UK mourns Dame Esther Rantzen (1940–2026)

Humanists UK is saddened to announce the death of Dame Esther Rantzen, the trailblazing broadcaster, founder of Childline, and stalwart campaigner for the right to die, aged 86.

Already known to millions for her pioneering television career and her tireless advocacy for children and older people, Dame Esther became a defining voice in the campaign for assisted dying in her final years. Her bravery in facing her own mortality, and her insistence on personal autonomy, shifted the national conversation on end-of-life choice.

A life of social change

Born in Berkhamsted in 1940, Dame Esther became a household name as the presenter of That’s Life!, a programme that mixed consumer journalism with entertainment. She presented a particularly notable episode of the show in 1988 which saw her interview humanitarian and humanist Sir Nicholas Winton, who saved the lives of more than 650 Jewish children ahead of the Second World War. Her ability to effect social change was evident early on; the show was responsible for launching Childline in 1986, the first national helpline for children in danger or distress. She later founded The Silver Line to combat loneliness in older people.

However, it was her diagnosis with stage four lung cancer in 2023 that led her to take on what she described as her ‘final campaign’: the legalisation of assisted dying.

‘My time is running out’

Dame Esther was open about her desire to have a ‘good death’ and her frustration with the UK’s current laws, which she described as a ‘cruel mess’. In December 2023, she revealed she had joined the Swiss organisation Dignitas, fearing that a painful death would obliterate the happy memories her family held of her.

She spoke with characteristic candour about the lack of choice available to dying people in the UK. She said:

‘It’s [assisted dying] not a question of shortening your life, it’s a question of shortening your death and we’ve always thought that was very important for people… to have that choice.’

Her intervention was credited with galvanising public support and placing immense pressure on political leaders to commit to a vote on the issue, personally securing former Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s pre-election pledge to voters to provide sufficient time for an assisted dying bill in Parliament. In the course of her campaigning, she frequently highlighted the injustice that a ‘good death’ was currently only available to those with the financial means and physical ability to travel abroad.

She recently announced she would no longer end her life abroad, due to being too physically frail to make the journey to Switzerland. Earlier this month the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill was narrowly voted down. The Bill was introduced to the Commons after the previous Bill fell, having been was filibustered by a minority of peers in the House of Lords.

Humanists UK Chief Executive Andrew Copson said:

‘Esther was a great champion of human dignity. She approached her final years with the same fearless determination that defined her career of advocacy, using her own experience to shine a light on the suffering caused by our outdated laws.

‘She understood that the right to choose a peaceful death is a fundamental human freedom. Her legacy is not just in the charities she founded, but in the compassion she awakened in the public consciousness regarding the end of life. She changed the debate, and we are deeply grateful for her courage.’