Shaking Hands with Death
| Author | Terry Pratchett |
|---|---|
| Audio read by | Terry Pratchett and Tony Robinson (original speech) |
| Country | UK |
| Language | English |
| Series | Anthologies |
| Sub-series | Non-fiction |
| Genre | Speech |
| Publisher | Corgi (standalone) |
Publication date | 2015-10-27 (standalone) |
| ISBN | 0552172774 |
| Data for the standalone paperback; see also A Slip of the Keyboard | |
This is a standalone, miniature paperback edition of Pratchett’s 2010 Richard Dimbleby Lecture. It was first collected in A Slip of the Keyboard, but was reprinted in this volume a year later, possibly to coincide with public debate of an assisted dying bill read in Parliament that year.
Blurb
Why we all deserve a live worth living and a death worth dying for.
‘Most men don't fear death. They fear those things - the knife, the shipwreck, the illness, the bomb - which precede, by microseconds if you're lucky, and many years if you're not, the moment of death.’
When Terry Pratchett was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in his fifties he was angry - not with death but with the disease that would take him there, and with the suffering disease can cause when we are not allowed to put an end to it. In this essay, broadcast to millions as the BBC Richard Dimbleby Lecture 2010, he argues for our right to choose - our right to a good life, and a good death too.
Podcast episodes
Major appearances
These are episodes primarily devoted to discussing the book as a whole. See pages for individual pieces for episodes about them.
| Date | Show | Episode | External link |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-03-08 | Pratchat | “AT LAST, SIR TERRY” | pratchatpodcast.com |
Other appearances
Episodes where there's significant discussion of the book, but it's not the focus of the episode.
| Date | Show | Episode | External link |
|---|
To be added.
External links
- “Shaking Hands with Death” at the L-Space Wiki