Drummer Dave Rowntree’s ex wife Paola Marra made the devastating decision to head to Dignitas in Switzerland alone to end her own life after receiving a terminal diagnosis
The ex-wife of Blur drummer Dave Rowntree left a staggering amount in her will after travelling alone to end her life. Paola Marra, who was married to the Britpop icon from 1994 till their divorce in the early 2000s, was terminally ill.
Despite the breakdown of their marriage, Dave was one of the people to support his ex-wife after she was diagnosed with terminal bowel cancer and later made the decision to end her own life in Zurich, Switzerland. Paola opted to fly out to Dignitas alone in March last year after facing several rounds of arduous treatment and surgeries.
Knowing her cancer was terminal, she didn’t want to face a probability of painful death, which was made worse due to the fact she was allergic to painkillers. New Zealand, Switzerland and Australia allow terminally ill adults to end their life on their own terms.
Paola left almost £1million in her will to her two brothers and two sisters. Her £941,000 estate also saw Paola leave £50,000 to her ex Dave as well as £4,000 each to four charities. She added £10,000 to a friend for looking after her pets, according to the Sun.
Following Paola’s death, Dave voiced his frustration over existing laws that present some people with terminal illnesses with the ‘brutal’ choice of wanting to end their lives, but being unable to legally request assistance from others.
Speaking six months on from his ex-wife’s death at Dignitas in Switzerland, the musician used the word ‘psychopathic’ to describe the current laws related to assisted dying in the UK. He claims they show “absolutely no empathy for the sufferer”.
Many members of the public – and celebrities like Dame Esther Rantzen – want the government to follow in the footsteps of the likes of New Zealand, Switzerland and Australia and allow terminally ill adults to end their life on their own terms.
Speaking in an emotional interview, Dave said of the current legality surrounding assisted dying: “It is the system washing its hands of difficult problems in a way that I can’t stomach. That’s the whole point of the state. The state can declare war…
“And if the state isn’t going to take these kind of difficult decisions, what the f**k is the point in having the state? This is psychopathic, where we are now, because the whole point of this [should be] to try to make things easier for the real victim in this – the terminally ill person.”
The drummer, who also lost his father to bowel cancer last year, went on to tell the Guardian how he initially tried to convince his ex-wife not to travel to Switzerland to die. He tried to persuade Paola to prepare for a comfortable death at home in London.
When she decided to go ahead with Dignitas, he offered to travel to Switzerland with his ex-wife but couldn’t due to the possibility he could for assisting suicide under current UK laws.
Heartbreakingly, Paola changed her mind and asked Dave to fly over once she landed in Zurich. The musician said how his ex told him “I don’t know if I can do this on my own” and he immediately began searching for flights out there.
She then called him back to urge him not to come and she died alone the following morning. Noting how anyone even suspected of helping a loved one end their own life risks a 14-year jail sentence, Dave mused: “It’s utterly brutal for the ill person because anyone they tell is potentially at risk of arrest, so they have to creep around like a criminal.”
Paola left a heartbreaking video in the wake of her death as she urged politicians to change the UK’s current “cruel law” which criminalises assisted dying.
In a film released after her death, she said: “When you watch this, I will be dead. I’m choosing to seek assisted dying because I refuse to let a terminal illness dictate the terms of my existence. The pain and suffering can become unbearable. It’s a slow erosion of dignity, the loss of independence, the stripping away of everything that makes life worth living.
“Assisted dying is not about giving up. In fact, it’s about reclaiming control. It’s not about death, it’s about dignity. It’s about giving people the right to end their suffering on their own terms, with compassion and respect. So, as you watch this, I am dead. But you watching this could help change the laws around assisted dying.”
The Macmillan Support Line offers confidential support to people living with cancer and their loved ones. If you need to talk, call us on 0808 808 0000.
READ MORE: ‘I’m a shopping expert and these are my 32 best Amazon Spring Sale deals live today’
Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.
