Esther Rantzen Dead: BAFTA-Winning British TV Presenter Was 86

Dame Esther Rantzen, the BAFTA-winning presenter of shows including That’s Life!, has died. She was 86.

In a statement issued to the Press Association, her children Miriam Wilcox, Rebecca Wilcox and Joshua Wilcox confirmed the passing of their “adored mother.”

Rantzen was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 2023 and went on to become a prominent campaigner for legalizing assisted dying in the UK. Lawmakers voted against proposed legislation earlier this month.

In a storied small screen career, Rantzen hosted consumer affairs show That’s Life! for more than two decades. Anthony Hopkins film One Life immortalized a famous episode of the BBC series in which the show reunited humanitarian Nicholas Winton with Jewish children he rescued from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia. Samantha Spiro played Rantzen in the film.

In 1988, Rantzen won BAFTA’s Richard Dimbleby Award for factual programming. She also appeared on Strictly Come Dancing and I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!. She was made a Dame by Queen Elizabeth II in 2014.

Rantzen’s children 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.

“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.”