Dame Deborah James lost her battle to bowel cancer in June 2022 at the age of 40 following a five-year battle.
The You, Me and the Big C’s star’s co-host Lauren Mahon, friend Emma Campbell and 5-Live presenter Tony Livesey discussed the late star’s legacy with the Bowelbabe Fund for Cancer Research UK, as they shared their final moments with the campaigner.
Tony opened up in a new interview as he detailed the last phone call he shared with Deborah, revealing she was “frightened of dying”.
The 5 Live host said the pair had many “honest conversations” over the years but it was the final call with Deborah that was most heartbreaking.
“She was crying, scared, and it was the first time she admitted that she was frightened of death,” he told Radio Times.
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Tony continued: “I couldn’t put the phone down as I knew it would be the last time I would speak to her.
“We were like young kids on a date – ‘you put it down,’ ‘no you put it down.’ In the end she put the phone down. And that was the last time I ever spoke to her.”
He recalled the moment he received a text message from Deborah’s husband Sebastien confirming she had died.
Tony admitted he “broke down” as he went on to pay tribute to the broadcaster.
He added to the same publication: “What a legacy – to die knowing you’ve saved one life is amazing, but she has saved thousands.”
Bowelbabe was set up in May 2022, a month before Dame Deborah’s death, to raise money for Cancer Research UK, with an initial target of £250,000.
“The amount that could be achieved with that £11m is beyond what anyone could realise at this point,” said Dame Deborah’s 15-year-old son, Hugo.
“I hope that it could save thousands, tens of thousands of lives if possible – and I think the way it’s going, it could save more.”
Dame Deborah was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2016, aged 35, and became an outspoken campaigner, encouraging people to check for signs of the deadly disease.
All of the family spoke about her “message of positivity”, even in those final weeks, and how she “embodied rebellious hope”.
“If you don’t stay positive, you just think about the negatives and that really brings you down,” said her daughter, Eloise, 13.
You can read the full interview in this week’s Radio Times out now.
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