The husband of Deborah James has spoken about her heartbreaking death in a new TV interview.
Dame Deborah, who campaigned to raise awareness of bowel cancer, sadly died last June at the age of 40 following a battle with the illness.
Her husband Sebastien Bowen appeared on Thursday’s BBC Breakfast as he opened up about the tragic loss.
Deborah James husband on BBC Breakfast
Sebastien said in the pre-recorded interview: “I think she died in probably one of the best ways you could hope to die with this terrible disease.
“She died surrounded by her mother, her father, her sister, me, all of us holding her hand being there for her. It was as much as it can be, and the first time I’ve ever seen someone pass away, but I think there was a peace to it.”
I think she died in probably one of the best ways you could hope to die with this terrible disease.
After that, he added: “I think she had done everything that she could have hoped to achieve.
“She was surrounded by everyone that loved her. What else could you hope for really?”
Deborah’s children
In addition, Sebastien and Deborah’s two children, Hugo, 15, and Eloise, 13, also made an appearance in the interview.
Eloise and Hugo gushed over their mum’s legacy after she raised more than £11million through her BowelBabe Fund for Cancer Research UK.
Hugo said on BBC Breakfast: “It’s unbelievable to be honest.
“It’s just amazing to think, first of all the legacy that it is, and second of all, the amount that could be achieved with this £11 million is beyond what anyone could realise.”
Meanwhile, Eloise added: “I remember a conversation, like, ‘Imagine if we hit £250k, that would be incredible, we’d be so overjoyed’ and then we hit a million and everyone was so shocked. We were like ‘how did we raise that money?!’
“Now it’s £11m, it’s crazy, it’s insane. Honestly, thank you to everyone.”
Deborah sadly died last June following her incredible fundraising efforts. During her final moments, Deborah received a damehood from Prince William, created a fashion line to raise money for Cancer Research and raised millions for the charity.
Read more: Dame Deborah James’ grieving mum shares fresh sadness as she pays tribute
Meanwhile, a post on her Instagram shared by her family at the time read: “Deborah shared her experience with the world to raise awareness, break down barriers, challenge taboos and change the conversation around cancer.
“Even in her most challenging moments, her determination to raise money and awareness was inspiring.”
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