Sir Michael Palin has opened up on a “very difficult period” in his life after the tragic death of his beloved wife Helen in 2023. The Monty Python star, 82, was married to Helen for 57 years before she sadly passed away from chronic kidney disease at the age of 80. Now Sir Michael has received an apology from the NHS.
While Helen was undergoing dialysis treatment at London’s NHS St Pancras Hospital, her transport to and from appointments was often unreliable and “inefficient”. Michael said: “The whole system was very inefficient, the people who collected her were sometimes an hour late. Sometimes, they didn't turn up; it was a very, very difficult period for her.”
The NHS has taken responsibility for the failures despite the system being operated by logistics company DHL, with a spokesperson issuing a statement that read: “It’s our responsibility, ultimately.
“We are sorry that Sir Michael's late wife Helen had a poor experience of the patient transport service.
“In the past two years we have worked closely with our transport provider to improve waiting times – particularly for dialysis patients. We have received positive feedback about the improvements we have made, and this work continues.”
Speaking on the podcast On the Marie Curie Couch, he made the heartbreaking admission: “There was a time when I didn’t think it was going to get better. I thought, gosh, it's just going to be poignant days. I'm going to break into tears every now and then.
“It does get better and it does adjust. And after two years now I feel I could think of Helen. I'm surrounded by her anyway. I've got photos. I haven't got rid of anything to do with her. The family embody what she was to them and that's all made it much, much easier.”
The star shared how down-to-earth Helen was, explaining: “She was obviously pleased that I had been successful at certain things, but didn't go on about it a lot. She was far more interested in whether I was going to be able to mend the tyre on the car.
“I remember ringing [her] up from the middle of the Tibetan Plateau. And I’m saying, ‘Guess where I am?’ She says, ‘Well, I don't care where you are. Where's the plumber's number? The bathroom boiler's gone and it's making a terrible hissing noise.’”
