Australian television presenter Fiona MacDonald died on 2 October 2024, aged 67, after living with motor neurone disease (MND). The “announcement” was a prepared farewell she had written before her death; her sister Kylie shared it on social media the following day. In it, MacDonald explained that she had chosen to stop medical supports and enter hospital for end-of-life palliative care.
What Fiona MacDonald’s final post said
MacDonald’s prepared message opened with a wry line: “my sister Kylie is posting this because I have left the building”. The wording could sound like a live announcement at first glance, but Kylie shared a message MacDonald had written beforehand. ABC News quoted the post in its report of MacDonald’s death on 3 October 2024: ABC News’ report on Fiona MacDonald’s death.
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In the message, MacDonald said that after a difficult period she had decided to cease medical supports and go to hospital for end-of-life palliative care. She reflected on how hard that choice was: “When you love life as much as I do, it takes a great deal of courage to make choices that lead to farewell.” The statement was her account of her own decision, not general medical advice.
She ended with an expression of affection for those who had followed her life: “I carry your love and laughter with me and hope you’ll remember mine.” Another line made clear she did not want the message treated as a final goodbye: “So let’s not call it goodbye as I hope to see you again on the other side.”
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Who was Fiona MacDonald?
MacDonald was an Australian presenter known for the children’s program Wombat and the game show It’s a Knockout. ABC also noted her later work as a wine expert, writing brochures and wine descriptions. Jenny Woodward, an ABC presenter and former Wombat colleague, remembered her as someone who “lit up the room when she walked in,” in the same ABC News report.
Her diagnosis and the Big Lap for MND
ABC reported that MacDonald was diagnosed with MND in November 2021. In 2023, she and her sister Kylie drove around Australia to raise awareness of the disease and funds for research. ABC’s later account of the journey reported that the sisters covered 15,520 kilometres over 40 days and raised $225,000 for clinical trials and patient care at Professor Dom Rowe’s MND Research Centre at Macquarie University. These figures come from ABC’s 28 October 2024 Australian Story retrospective: ABC’s account of the Big Lap and its fundraising.
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Rowe, MacDonald’s neurologist, described her response to the diagnosis in ABC’s 2023 feature on the trip: “She put her armour back on, pulled herself together and with a bit of a f*** you approach, said, ‘This is what I’m going to do’.” The sisters’ journey connected their personal response to MND with public awareness and support for research. Read the original feature: ABC’s 2023 feature on Fiona and Kylie MacDonald’s Big Lap.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.When the message was shared
MacDonald died on 2 October 2024, aged 67. Her sister shared the prepared post on 3 October, when ABC reported her death and quoted the message. The timing explains the headline: MacDonald had written words announcing her own death, but she did not publish them after she had died.
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