2012-11-11

Dawn French Dawn French is one of the most beloved women in comedy. Adored in Australia for French and Saunders and the Vicar of Dibley, she’s also just appeared in a supermarket campaign poking fun at her large frame. Dawn is a poster girl for curvy girls – and she’s not afraid to speak her mind about it. Ross Coulthart sat down with Dawn over High Tea at London’s Savoy Hotel where nothing was off limits. Behind the laughs Dawn talks about the suicide of her father, the breakdown of a 25-year marriage, and the endless criticism of the British press. This is a woman’s story to make you laugh and cry. Never Ending Appetite It’s the most baffling and bizarre medical syndrome known to science. Around 20 Australian babies are born with it every year, half a million live with it around the world. There is no test for it, and scientists do not know why it strikes. There is no cure and currently no answers – sufferers simply have a constant, total uncontrollable urge to eat. Imagine always being hungry and never feeling full? It’s called Prader Willi Syndrome – a random brain abnormality which causes many victims to literally eat themselves to death. They will eat anything they can, from the floor, from bins, anywhere. In this remarkable Tim Noonan investigation, meet the mother of James from Melbourne, who at 21, pleaded with his mother to allow him to escape his misery by committing death by food. There was nothing in Australia to help James. But there is hope. A place where PWS sufferers help each other. One success story is Laetitia, who was a staggering 203kgs, and needed 19 firemen to help her out of her house. Now, on the road to recovery, her transformation is extraordinary. Checking Out Susan Potts is incredibly fit for 89 years of age. A former model, her photos show a beautiful woman leading a full and colourful life. Married three times, Susan was eccentric and until just recently, still driving her vintage Rolls Royce around the Gold Coast. Her sister was the famous author Sarah Henderson, who died a lingering and painful death Susan witnessed first-hand. It’s not a path she wanted for herself. So, five weeks ago, Susan decided to ‘check out’, on her terms, to her own timetable. And she wanted her decision to be a lightning rod for the euthanasia debate. Two weeks ago she made a video interview, put her affairs in order, and then four days later – at home alone – she took her life. She didn’t tell her friends or family. Susan’s remarkable interview will polarise views about the right to choose your demise, particularly for people who are fit and healthy. Doctor Death Philip Nitschke, who met Susan, denies the death of a perfectly fit and healthy person is a step too far. Indeed Nitschke believes the age at which someone can decide to legally take their own life should be set at 50. This controversial and confronting story will spark reaction and debate, and is not to be missed.