Radio star Annie Nightingale had an impressive career before her death in January 2024.
The Old Grey Whistle Test star held the Guinness World Record for the longest career as a female radio presenter, and was the longest serving presenter in Radio 1’s history
Annie’s cause of death was never publicly confirmed, with sources reporting she passed away after a “short illness”. And the star was notoriously private when it came to her health, preferring to keep her cards close to her chest.
However, in 2009, Annie confirmed that she had fallen ill while abroad and was rushed to a treatment centre in Los Angeles. In an interview with The Independent, she was asked what she learned from travelling so much.
She replied: “I’ve travelled a lot so you do come a cropper at some point. I’ve been mugged in Cuba, drugged in Baghdad and bugged in . The most important thing is not to skimp on travel insurance. I got ill in Los Angeles last year [2008] and I was terrified that I’d get a half-a-million-dollar bill from the medical centre I was treated at.”
Annie Nightingale died at the age of 83 in January 2024 (Image: Getty)
It wasn’t Annie’s only health mishap abroad, as she was attacked in 1996 while in Havana – and was forced to undergo emergency surgery. She spent Christmas Day in hospital after being mugged in Cuba, struggling with her attacker who grabbed her bag.
She explained to ’s Newsbeat at the time: “I had been warned that in these dark streets you should be careful, but because I was with Cubans I thought nothing would happen. I had seen somebody looking very suspicious on the street and had walked past him.
“The next thing I know someone had come at me from behind and torn my bag away from me. I went to grab it back, which probably was the wrong thing to do.
An injury abroad affected Annie’s whole life (Image: Getty)
“I don’t know what happened but the next thing I knew I was in the most terrible pain and laying on the ground with my leg broken. The attacker ran away and the guy I was with gave chase and he ended up with a broken collar bone.”
Annie broke her femur just below the hip in the attack, and was operated on with pins and screws being inserted into her bone. She was left unable to walk for a number of months – and was left “in shock” from the “traumatic” experience, and needed to be airlifted back to the UK after the incident.
The injury had a long-term impact on Annie’s health, and she was still struggling with it in 2020.
Annie left behind more than £1million in her will, with her estate going to her two children, Alex and Lucy.