Sir Terry, who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease and has previously campaigned in favour of assisted dying , passed away at home with his family by his side. The author had succumbed to a chest infection earlier this year, which gradually worsened. He passed away on March 12th. His publishers confirmed it was the result of natural causes rather than the assisted suicide he had campaigned for.Despite heated criticism over his controversial new programme, Sir Terry, who had a rare form of early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, admitted it had not changed his view on assisted suicide.
Sarah Wootton, Chief Executive of Dignity in Dying , said:
“I am saddened to hear of the death of Dignity in Dying Patron Sir Terry Pratchett and our thoughts are with his family and close friend Rob Wilkins. Terry was a committed campaigner who did an enormous amount to bring assisted dying for terminally ill people to the public’s attention. He accompanied Peter Smedley to Dignitas in a landmark BBC documentary which showed how terminally ill people are currently being forced to travel abroad to control their deaths. Sir Terry was fond of saying “it’s time we learned to be as good at dying as we are at living” and his brave approach to confronting issues of death, including his own, was a heartfelt demonstration of dignity.”