Broadcaster and Childline founder Esther Rantzen dies aged 86

Dame Esther Rantzen, the broadcaster, campaigner and founder of Childline, has died aged 86, her family said. Rantzen presented and produced the BBC programme That’s Life! for 21 years, from 1973 to 1994.

The show combined consumer investigations with lighter material and at its peak attracted about 20 million viewers. She founded Childline in 1986, creating a counselling service for children and young people. In 2013 she launched Silver Line to support older people experiencing isolation and loneliness.

Rantzen was diagnosed with lung cancer in January 2023. She later became a prominent advocate for assisted dying and disclosed that she had joined the Swiss organisation Dignitas. She subsequently said she was too physically fragile to travel and argued that the law should change.

Her family described her as a wonderful mother and cherished grandmother, saying that the compassion behind her charities would endure. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said she had changed countless lives. BBC director-general Matt Brittin called her a legend of British broadcasting.

Rantzen began her career at BBC radio as a sound-effects assistant before working as a researcher, reporter, producer and director. She was made a dame in 2015 for services to children and older people. She also appeared on Strictly Come Dancing, First Dates and I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!

She was married to documentary filmmaker Desmond Wilcox until his death in 2000 and had three children.