A best-selling author who detailed her experience with dementia has announced her own death in a posthumous blog post.
Wendy Mitchell, 68, authored acclaimed books on her condition after she was diagnosed with early-onset vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s in July 2014, at the age of 58.
“If you’re reading this, it means this has probably been posted by my daughters as I’ve sadly died,” she wrote in her final blog post.
“Sorry to break the news to you this way, but if I hadn’t, my inbox would eventually have been full of emails asking if I’m OK, which would have been hard for my daughters to answer…
“In the end, I died simply by deciding not to eat or drink anymore.”
At the time of her diagnosis, Ms Mitchell, from East Yorkshire, was working as an NHS rota manager, having also brought up two daughters as a single mother.
She began to become concerned about her health when her “encyclopaedic memory” began to fail her.
“I’d forget the simplest of words, or the names of people I’d worked with forever,” she told the charity Dementia UK in a 2019 interview.
Ms Mitchell said at one point before her diagnosis she turned around to see her name at the entrance to her office and forgot it was hers.
She also was a keen runner who would regularly go jogging beside the River Ouse.
“Things just weren’t right, and then when I was out running, my legs and my brain weren’t talking to one another and I’d end up falling flat on my face,” she said.
“I knew that something wasn’t right.”
X
This content is provided by X, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable X cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to X cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow X cookies for this session only.
After 18 months of tests and scans, Ms Mitchell was given her diagnosis, something she revealed in her books pushed her into a “deep depression”.
She found an outlet in writing, starting the blog What Me and I Today? as well as penning her journey in a deeply personal 2018 memoir named Somebody I Used To Know, which became a Sunday Times best-seller.
Ms Mitchell also wrote the acclaimed 2022 book, What I Wish I Knew About Dementia, while the paperback edition of her third book, One Last Thing: Living With The End In Mind, is due to be published next week.
She also became a vocal advocate for assisted dying, which is illegal in the UK, but permitted in countries such as Switzerland and The Netherlands.
“If assisted dying was available in this country, I would have chosen it in a heartbeat, but it isn’t,” she said in her final blog post.
“I didn’t want dementia to take me into the later stages; that stage where I’m reliant on others for my daily needs; others deciding for me when I shower or maybe insisting I had a bath, which I hate; or when and what I eat and drink.
“Yes, I may be happy, but that’s irrelevant. The Wendy that was didn’t want to be the Wendy dementia will dictate for me. I wouldn’t want my daughters to see the Wendy I’d become either.”
She said in the post that she had opted for an assisted dying process in Switzerland but felt unable to travel after a fall in which she broke both her wrists.
“In the end, after my accident, the only choice open to me was to stop eating and drinking,” she said.
She added: “Adapting to this life with dementia is over, but I don’t consider dementia has won, as that would be negative and you all know I’m a positive person.
“It’s ME calling time on MY dementia – checkmate, before IT plays its final move.”
In a post on X, her daughters, Sarah and Gemma, said: “Our mum died peacefully early this morning. She wrote a blog post before she died, so you can read about it from her perspective.”
X
This content is provided by X, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable X cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to X cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow X cookies for this session only.
Paying tribute to Ms Mitchell, Paul Edwards, director of clinical services at Dementia UK, said everyone at the charity was “deeply saddened” by the news of her death.
“A tireless campaigner, Wendy’s writing and work helped many people understand what it is like to live with dementia, as well as giving a powerful voice to those living with the condition,” he said.
“Wendy spoke candidly about how her dementia affected her, and her efforts will leave a lasting impact in the way we understand dementia and approach dementia care.
“Her contributions to our Lived Experience Advisory Panel helped to ensure the specialist dementia care we offer reflects the needs of people facing dementia.
“Our thoughts are with Wendy’s family and we send our deepest condolences at this difficult time.”
A 62-year-old British woman has died in the French Alps after colliding with another skier, according to local reports.
The English woman was skiing on the Aiguille Rouge mountain of Savoie at around 10.30am on Tuesday when she hit a 35-year-old man who was stationary on the same track, local news outlet Le Dauphine reported.
It added that emergency services and rescue teams rushed to the scene but couldn’t resuscitate the woman, who died following the “traumatic shock”.
The man she collided with was also said to be a British national.
Local reports said the pair were skiing on black slopes, a term used to describe the most challenging ski runs with particularly steep inclines.
A spokesperson for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office told Sky News: “We are supporting the family of a British woman who died in France and are in touch with the local authorities.”
Singer Linda Nolan, who rose to fame alongside her sisters in The Nolans, has died after several years of battling cancer.
The Irish star, 65, and her sisters Coleen, Maureen, Bernie, Denise and Anne, had a run of hits in the late 1970s and ’80s – including the disco classic I’m In The Mood For Dancing.
Paying tribute on The Nolans‘ X account, her sisters described her as “a pop icon and beacon of hope”, who “faced incurable cancer with courage, grace and determination, inspiring millions”.
X
This content is provided by X, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable X cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to X cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow X cookies for this session only.
Linda died peacefully in hospital this morning, “embraced with love and comfort” with her siblings by her side, her agent Dermot McNamara said in a statement.
“As a member of The Nolans, one of the most successful girl groups of all time, Linda achieved global success; becoming the first Irish act to sell over a million records worldwide, touring the world and selling over 30 million records,” he said.
“Her distinctive voice and magnetic stage presence brought joy to fans around the world, securing her place as an icon of British and Irish entertainment.”
As well as her TV and musical career, Linda helped to raise more than £20 million for numerous charities, including Breast Cancer Now, Irish Cancer Society, Samaritans and others.
“Her selflessness and tireless commitment to making a difference in the lives of others will forever be a cornerstone of her legacy,” Mr McNamara said.
Linda’s death came after she was admitted to hospital with pneumonia over the weekend. She began receiving end-of-life care after slipping into a coma on Tuesday.
Details of a celebration of the star’s “remarkable life” will be shared in due course.
X
This content is provided by X, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable X cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to X cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow X cookies for this session only.
Linda was born to Tommy and Maureen Nolan in Dublin on 23 February 1959, the sixth of eight children.
Her parents were both singers and keen to turn their young family into a musical troupe. Linda made her stage debut aged just four.
Those early years put the siblings on track for a career in show business which lasted for decades. As well as I’m In The Mood For Dancing, The Nolans had hits with Gotta Pull Myself Together, Attention To Me and Don’t Make Waves, and they also had their own TV specials.
At their height, they toured with Frank Sinatra and were reported to have outsold The Beatles in Japan.
Linda left the group in 1983, but later reformed with her sisters for several comeback performances. She also became known for musical theatre, most notably performing the role of Mrs Johnstone in Blood Brothers for three years from 2000.
Four siblings struck by cancer
Linda was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005, and underwent a mastectomy two days before her 47th birthday.
The sisters were diagnosed with different forms of the disease just days apart after they returned home from filming a series of their show, The Nolans Go Cruising. Linda had cancer of the liver, while Anne had breast cancer.
They went on to write Stronger Together, an account of their journey that included frank details of their treatments and the side effects.
But in 2023, Linda revealed the cancer had spread to her brain and she was beginning treatment as part of a new drug trial.
The Nolans lost their second-youngest sister, Bernie, to cancer in 2013, aged 52.
Linda’s husband of 26 years, Brian Hudson, died in 2007 after being diagnosed with skin cancer.
Anne Nolan is now cancer-free.
Tributes to star ‘who was always a joy’
TV star and singer Cheryl Baker and comedian Tommy Cannon are among those who have paid tribute.
“I’m heartbroken to hear about the passing of Linda Nolan,” Cannon wrote on X. “I had the pleasure of working with her on so many occasions, and she was always a joy – full of warmth and love. My thoughts and love are with the Nolan girls and the whole family.”
“The most incredible voice, the wickedest sense of humour, such a massive talent,” Baker wrote. “You’re with Brian now, Lin.”
Loose Women also sent its love to her family. Linda appeared as a guest panellist on the ITV chat show over the years, alongside her sister Coleen.
The Blackpool Grand Theatre described her as “a true Blackpool icon”.
A 20-year-old trainee gas engineer who won £7.5m says he was back working on blocked drains the day after claiming his cash.
James Clarkson, 20, from Carlisle, Cumbria, found out he’d hit the £7,533,329 National Lottery jackpot on 4 January – but said he has no plans to quit his job.
“I was out in the cold fixing blocked drains the day after I found out I had won,” he said.
“It was a bit grim but that’s reality.
“I’m not going to stop working, I’m too young,” he added, admitting he knew it might sound “mad” to some.
“I want to qualify as a heating engineer and then go from there.
“I need to have a purpose in life, plus dad wouldn’t let me not work anyway. He says there are plenty of millionaires out there that still work and you need a reason to get up each day.”
Mr Clarkson added he still planned to have “some nice holidays” in between working, and revealed one of his first purchases was an all-inclusive luxury break to Cape Verde, along with a few designer items including a Gucci bag for his girlfriend and two new jackets for himself.
He said he also planned to splash out on a new car, possibly an Audi – but for now, he’s got his work van.
“If you drive a cold work van all day, going from job to job, you’d understand,” he said.
“The comfort, the steering, the heated seats. I realise how jammy that sounds, not many people my age can afford the car insurance let alone a car like that to drive.”
As a huge Manchester City fan, he said he was also looking to buy a season ticket at the Etihad Stadium, as well as taking care of his extended family – starting with paying off his parents’ mortgage.
He said: “I’ve been thinking about it a lot, it’s what I want to do. I told them last night and they seemed really overwhelmed.
“We are close and they have always been there for me. This win isn’t just for me, I want to make sure we all benefit.”
Mr Clarkson played on the National Lottery app, choosing his winning numbers – 16, 19, 22, 24, 27 and 35 – at random.