Remembering Dame Esther Rantzen – and the Remarkable Legacy of The Silver Line

The sad news of the death of Dame Esther Rantzen, aged 86, has prompted many people to reflect on an extraordinary life in broadcasting, campaigning and public service.

For many of us, Esther will always be associated with That’s Life! and, of course, Childline.

But there is another part of her legacy that feels particularly important to us at Fen Mobility Centre: The Silver Line.

The idea behind The Silver Line came from Esther’s own experience of loneliness.

After the death of her husband, Desmond Wilcox, Esther found herself living alone in her seventies. Despite having a busy life, family, friends and a successful career, she spoke openly about how lonely an empty home could feel at the end of the day.

When she wrote publicly about those feelings, something remarkable happened. Older people began contacting her and sharing their own experiences.

One letter in particular came from a woman who described herself as happy and optimistic and who had family living nearby – yet could sometimes go three days without speaking to another person.

It highlighted something that is very easy to overlook: loneliness doesn't necessarily mean having nobody in your life.

You can have children, grandchildren, neighbours and friends and still experience long periods without meaningful conversation or companionship.

The beginning of The Silver Line

Esther decided to do something about it.

Drawing partly on her experience of creating Childline, she developed the idea of a telephone service specifically for older people – somewhere you could call without feeling that you were troubling family, imposing on a friend or needing to have a particular "problem".

The Silver Line launched nationally in 2013.

Its premise was beautifully simple: if you're feeling lonely, worried, isolated or would simply like somebody to talk to, there should be someone at the other end of the telephone.

And crucially, that support should be available when loneliness actually happens – not just during office hours.

Today, The Silver Line Helpline is part of Age UK and remains a free, confidential service available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to people aged 55 and over.

Over its first decade, the service supported around four million calls.

Something we see ourselves

At Fen Mobility Centre, we spend a great deal of time talking to older people and their families, and Esther's message resonates enormously with us.

People may initially come through our doors because they need a mobility scooter, a new chair or some advice about managing at home. But quite often, what begins as a conversation about a product becomes a much wider conversation about life.

We've always believed that taking the time to listen is an important part of what we do.

Independence isn't simply about being physically able to get from A to B. It's about remaining connected to your community, seeing friends and family, getting out of the house and continuing to feel part of the world around you.

Sometimes technology and equipment can help with that. Sometimes what somebody really needs is simply another human being to talk to.

A remarkable legacy

Dame Esther achieved an enormous amount during her lifetime, but perhaps one of her greatest qualities was her ability to recognise a problem that people weren't talking about – and then actually do something about it.

With The Silver Line, she helped bring loneliness among older people into the open.

More importantly, she created something practical to help.

The Silver Line continues today, which means that every time somebody who feels alone picks up the telephone and finds a friendly voice waiting for them, a little part of Esther's work continues too.

That seems a very fitting legacy.

If you or somebody you know could benefit from a friendly conversation, The Silver Line Helpline is free to call on 0800 4 70 80 90, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.