Yahoo News Silent Witness's Liz Carr to front new show for the BBC
Liz Carr is to present a documentary discussing euthenasia and assisted suicide for the BBC.
With the working title of Better Off Dead?, the documentary, also written by Silent Witness star Carr, is set to explore the debate surrounding assisted death. While the press release reports that the majority of people in the UK are in favour of doctor-assisted suicide for the terminally ill, Carr and other disabled people fear that, if passed, a law legalising euthanasia will put their lives at risk.
"Too many disabled people will have had the experience of someone, often a complete stranger, telling them: 'If I was like you, I'd rather be dead,'" Carr said. "Putting such low value on our lives has been reported in medical settings when disabled and older people have 'do not resuscitate' orders placed on their medical notes without their consent."
Related: Silent Witness' Liz Carr reveals she would love to play a James Bond villain
"This documentary is about challenging the assumptions behind these actions and shining a light on the many grey areas in this often one-sided debate," she added. "I'm pro-choice, an atheist, a rights campaigner and assisted suicide scares me. I want everyone to have a good death and through this documentary, I hope to show why I'm unconvinced that any type of 'assisted dying' is the answer to this."
Director of Unscripted Kate Phillips presented the upcoming documentary speaking at the Edinburgh TV Festival, touching upon BBC's recent factual slate.
"Factual at the BBC is in great shape, with recent series such as Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland and Parole as well as singles such as Rose Ayling Ellis's film on the deaf community or Matt Willis on addiction winning widespread acclaim," Phillips said.
Related: Silent Witness' Liz Carr says BBC "need to do better" for disability representation
"We want to continue bringing audiences impactful new films that inspire debate and bring fresh new perspectives on important issues and I'm really pleased that Liz Carr is presenting this new film, sharing her own unique insight into the difficult debate around assisted suicide."
Better Off Dead? (working title) will air on BBC One and be available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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