To the thousands of people waiting to meet him and the millions more watching at home, Roy Castle was simply a man on a mission, touring the country to raise the profile of lung cancer and the dangers of passive smoking.
But behind the scenes, Roy was a very different figure from the one that greeted us on the station platforms.
His wife, Fiona, shares her memories from that epic journey and how she helped Roy achieve his final wish those 30 years ago.
“I knew that Roy could die whilst we were on the Tour of Hope,” describes Fiona. “I was prepared for that.
“Before the tour started, I spoke to one of his doctors and asked him if he could do it, if it was safe for him to do. Would he survive? He said that they had ways to give people their last desire. That was typically a world cruise, but Roy could have a go on a train if he wanted instead!
“Although, we actually did day one of the tour on a bus because there were train strikes going on! I remember Roy was at the back of the bus throwing up and I was telling him to stop because he needed to do an TV interview. And he did. He just got up and did it. That was the sort of person he was.”
Will he survive the night?
But away from the cameras, Roy was desperately poorly and there were several times when Fiona feared they would lose him.
We had a nurse accompany us for the whole trip – Pauline Murphy – and the night we were in Glasgow, she came to me and said, ‘He’s not going to survive the night, Fiona’. We stayed up with him all night and he was so weak. But then, the alarm went off and he woke up and said ‘Right, let’s go then!’
“I think he knew he just had to do it. It was what he wanted to do, and I was so pleased that he was wanting to make a difference even in the last moments of his life. I don’t think I could have stopped him, and I would not have wanted to stop him because it was lovely to see his dedication. It was my job to encourage him and help him and try and keep him awake and alive!”
For our children and our children’s children
When Roy agreed to do the Tour of Hope, it was never about him. His cancer was advanced, his treatment had stopped and, in truth, there was little hope left for him personally.
Most people would choose to spend the time they had left away from the spotlight, in the comfort of their own home, with their loved ones. But Roy wasn’t most people…
“Roy got so much publicity whilst he was ill. He wanted to make the most of it.
“But he was very humble in himself. He wasn’t keen on publicity for his own sake, and he certainly didn’t see himself as a ‘star’ at all.
“He used to say that he was just really grateful that he was able to earn a living doing the things he loved, like music and dancing and I think he thought the same about the Tour of Hope.
“It was an opportunity to make a difference. He wasn’t just using the last days of his life lying in a hospital bed. He was doing something a bit more useful. And I think that’s what he’d say now if he was still here. He’d say perhaps we did something worthwhile.”
