Legendary BBC host Dame Esther Rantzen has died at 86 after a years-long battle with lung cancer. Tributes began pouring in for Esther Rantzen, who long presented the BBC’s That’s Life!, after her family announced Wednesday that she died at her home in New Forest, England. She launched a counseling helpline for young people in the United Kingdom, Childline, in 1986 after she featured a heartbreaking segment about a toddler who starved to death. She also launched The Silver Line in 2012 for older people experiencing loneliness and isolation. The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children’s CEO was among those praising her decades of service. “Esther was a unique and truly remarkable woman who, during her life, did incredible things and went to exceptional lengths to ensure children and young people across the U.K. had somewhere to turn when they were in need of help,” he said. Rantzen was the first woman to receive BAFTA’s prestigious Dimbleby Award in 1988. She also received an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for her reporting in 1991, the Commander OBE title for her support of young people and children in 2006, and the Dame Commander title in 2015.
Read it at The Telegraph
