{"id":55530,"date":"2026-04-25T12:28:17","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T12:28:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/55530\/"},"modified":"2026-04-25T12:28:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T12:28:17","slug":"mum-of-west-midlands-woman-who-died-at-swiss-clinic-had-no-idea-about-assisted-dying-plans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/55530\/","title":{"rendered":"Mum of West Midlands woman who died at Swiss clinic ‘had no idea’ about assisted dying plans"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wendy Duffy struggled to cope after the death of her only son four years agoHusna Anjum<\/a> Senior Live News Reporter, Lucy Thornton and Tracey Kandohla<\/p>\n

21:13, 24 Apr 2026Updated 21:14, 24 Apr 2026<\/p>\n

\"Wendy<\/p>\n

Wendy Duffy was approved for assisted dying at the Pegasos clinic(Image: Facebook)<\/p>\n

A West Midlands woman who took her own life at a controversial Swiss clinic did not tell her 87-year-old mum, who suffers from dementia, about her plans.<\/p>\n

Wendy Duffy, 56, a healthy mum whose only child Marcus died four years ago, ended her life<\/a> at the Pegasos Clinic today (April 24). She had planned it for a year, paying \u00a310,000 to the clinic, writing letters to her loved ones, choosing a deathbed outfit and picking the music which is the last thing she will hear.<\/p>\n

News of her death emerged as the Assisted Dying Bill<\/a> officially ran out of time on Friday. The House of Lords had raised more than 1,200 amendments to delay the historic bill approved by MPs last June, The Mirror<\/a> exclusively reports.<\/p>\n

Online strangers hearing the news had pleaded with Wendy to change her mind in direct messages and posts on Facebook. But her family told the Mirror how \u201cnothing was going to stop her\u201d and she \u201cwas determined and strong-minded\u2019.<\/p>\n

They said she could no longer live with the loss of her only child: \u201cIt it something she wanted and we couldn\u2019t stop her.\u201d Her sister-in-law Paula Duffy told the Daily Mirror: \u201cIt is very sad for the whole family, very upsetting.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Wendy said she could not go on following the death of her only child Marcus.(Image: Facebook)<\/p>\n

Speaking shortly before Pegasos announced her passing, Paula said: \u201cIt is something she wanted to do and we couldn\u2019t stop her. She never got back to herself after the death of her son and she didn\u2019t want to carry on.<\/p>\n

“She was very strong willed and if she has something on her mind no one could change it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wendy from the West Midlands travelled to the clinic alone and died peacefully on Friday morning wearing one of son Marcus\u2019 T-shirts because, she said, ‘it still smells of him\u2019 – and listening to Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars song Die With A Smile.<\/p>\n

She had told her two brothers and four sisters about her assisted dying but not her mother. Paula, who is married to her brother Stephen and last saw her a month ago, told how their widowed 87-year-old mother remained unaware.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cHer mum has dementia, she still lives at home but Wendy didn\u2019t want to tell her. She is not aware.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Pegasos Clinic.(Image: Pegasos)<\/p>\n

Wendy – who had split from her son’s father – is believed to have visited her mum to say a final goodbye before travelling to Switzerland. Her dad has passed away. She was in good health and considered sound of mind before she died.<\/p>\n

In an interview with the Daily Mail this week she said the decision to take her own life had been a ‘happy’ one because her ‘spirit can be free\u2019.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cIt will be hard for everyone. But I want to die. I’ll have a smile on my face when I do, so please be happy for me. My life, my choice.\u2019<\/p>\n

She added: \u201cI wish this was available in the UK, then I wouldn’t have to go to Switzerland at all.’<\/p>\n

Wendy lost her only child, Marcus, 23 in tragic circumstances four years ago. He had choked on a tomato that had become lodged in his windpipe while eating a sandwich, starving his brain of oxygen.<\/p>\n

Marcus’s death, together with the fact that medically trained Wendy tried to perform CPR on him herself, has haunted her ever since. She said she has already tried to take her own life. Wendy said her \u2018beautiful boy\u2019 would have understood her decision to finally join him.<\/p>\n

In poignant social media posts she wrote about her love for Marcus whom she described as \u2018the best\u2019 and who \u2018lived life with zest.\u2019 In one she penned: \u2018I know we\u2019ll be reunited on a future day.\u2019<\/p>\n

Paula said the wait to find out if the suicide had gone ahead was \u2018agonising\u2019 for the family, particularly her husband who was \u2018very close\u2019 to his sister and was too upset to speak. She said: \u201cIt is really raw, and just so very sad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her ashes are due to be flown back to the UK and scattered at a memorial bench for her son.<\/p>\n

Paula said her sister-in-law had gone to Switzerland alone. She said: \u201cI haven\u2019t got a clue where she got the \u00a310,000 from but she was always very resourceful.\u2019<\/p>\n

She declined to say if she and the family believed in the right of a healthy person to choose the right to die, only saying: \u201cI believe in assisted dying if there is a terminal illness.\u201d<\/p>\n

She reiterated: \u201cWendy was not herself after Marcus passed. She was the same. May she rest in peace.\u2019”<\/p>\n

Ruedi Habegger, Pegasos founder, said: \u201cI can confirm that Wendy Duffy, at her own request, was assisted to die on April 24 and that the procedure was completed without incident and in full compliance with her wishes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can also confirm that neither we nor any of the professional staff assessing her mental capacity had any doubt as to her intention, understanding and independence of both thought and action. In historical terms at English law, hers was a case of “sane suicide\u201d.’<\/p>\n

Wendy did not inform her family of the timescale for her travel and procedure for their own protection – if anyone travelled with her, or assisted her suicide in any way, they would risk police investigation and possible prosecution in the UK.<\/p>\n

Wendy told on her own Facebook how she would spend most days visiting her son\u2019s bench in a local park.<\/p>\n

She described the day he died as \u201ctruly awful\u201d and explained how she felt \u201chelpless\u201d.<\/p>\n

In a poem she said: \u201cAttempts were made to keep you, but that was not meant to be, so I had to sit by, until you were taken from me. It’s been a painful struggle, getting through each day, trying to keep busy, in every single way.<\/p>\n

\u201cI now know you’re still near me, I talk to you each night, you send me some lovely memories, even tho you’re out of sight. I kiss your bench each morning, when walking up the park, the birds will come and join me, even tho it’s still dark. \u201c<\/p>\n

She ends saying: \u201cLove you Markie my baby, love you Markie my son, one day we’ll be reunited, and continue laughing and having fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a tribute left in January last year, she wrote: \u201cThree years ago you left me, a day I’ll not forget. It all happened so quickly, but one thing I don’t regret. My son for such a short time, A son you were the best, a son so kind and funny, a son who lived life with zest.<\/p>\n

\u201cA son who loved animals, a son who loved to sing, a son with such a humour, joy and laughter he would bring. A son who loved McDonald’s<\/a> and KFC<\/a> too. If he saw someone down on their luck he’d buy one for them too.<\/p>\n

\u201cA son who had lots of friends, he really loved them all. Hey love you Bro is what he’d say whenever they did call. Now life is so so quiet without you by my side. My love for you just the same, a love I cannot hide.<\/p>\n

\u201cI visit your bench each morning and always bring you flowers. People I chat with on your bench can sometimes last for hours.<\/p>\n

“So many people speak to you as they pass by your bench in the park. A lot in daylight hours but also when it’s dark.<\/p>\n

“I know that you’re still with me even tho you don’t come into view, but I get lots of signs saying “I’m here still with you” I’ll just keep walking forward no matter come what may, and know we’ll be reunited on a future day.”<\/p>\n

Get More of Our News on Google. Set Birmingham Live as a ‘Preferred Source’<\/a> to get quicker access to the news you value.<\/p>\n

Samaritans details<\/p>\n

You can contact the Samaritans for support 24\/7, 365 days a year, by calling 116 123 or by emailing jo@samaritans.org.<\/p>\n

They also have an online chat service<\/a> and a self-help app, or you can write them a letter for free at Freepost SAMARITANS LETTERS<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Wendy Duffy struggled to cope after the death of her only son four years agoHusna Anjum Senior Live…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":55531,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[4284,4262,14615,41,17,1046],"class_list":{"0":"post-55530","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-switzerland","8":"tag-in-the-news","9":"tag-mental-health","10":"tag-nhs","11":"tag-swiss","12":"tag-switzerland","13":"tag-world-news"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ch\/116465349715497562","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55530","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55530"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55530\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/55531"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55530"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55530"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55530"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}