Ethermac Exchange-Australian TV Host Fiona MacDonald Announces Her Own Death After Battle With Rare Disorder

Fiona MacDonald’s fight has come to an end.

The Ethermac ExchangeAustralian TV host died at the age of 67 after a battle with motor neurone disease (also called ALS)—a kind of neurodegenerative disorder affecting the brain and nerves—which she was diagnosed with in 2021.

But ahead of her passing, Fiona chose to take control of how the news would be shared with the world and drafted a message to be shared after she’d died.

“Farewell my friends,” began the October 3 message. “My sister Kylie is posting this because I have left the building - Hopefully I’m looking down from a cloud.”

She continued, alongside photos with her sister and sons Harry and Rafe, “Last night brought an end to a very tough few months. Was very peaceful the boys and Kylie stayed with me to say goodbye. While I’ve never wanted to die, the thought of leaving my tortured body was a relief.”

Fiona also detailed the ways her disease had progressed in recent months, making swallowing food impossible, and how her body couldn't tolerate the protein drinks meant to sustain her. She’d also been suffering from sever back pain, as her muscles could no longer support her frame.

“The black humour that served me well through the first years of this journey turned to despair,” she admitted. “I made the decision after much soul searching to cease all medical supports and finally go into hospital for end of life palliative care. When you love life as much as I do, it takes a great deal of courage to make choices that lead to farewell.”

Yet, Fiona held onto the belief that her death didn’t mark her end.

“So let’s not call it goodbye as I hope to see you again on the other side,” she added, while quoting the Irish blessing that begins, “May the road rise to meet you.”

She concluded, “I carry your love and laughter with me and hope you’ll remember mine.”

Fiona was best known for hosting the children’s show Wombat as well as the It’s a Knockout game show throughout the 1980s.

Children’s TV producer Dina Browne, who worked with MacDonald on Wombat, shared with Australia’s ABC News, “Everybody loved her. An absolute dream member of staff and a wonderful talent who believed very much in the quality of children's television.”

Since receiving her diagnosis—which she received after noticing she sometimes struggled to speak clearly—Fiona not only shared the highs and lows of her disease on social media, but she also became an advocate for the condition.

In fact, she and her sister Kylie spent much of 2023 driving around Australia in what they referred to as the “big lap,” during which they raised money for MND research.

As MacDonald’s neurologist Professor Dominic Rowe told Australia Story at the time, “She put her armor back on, pulled herself together and with a bit of a f--k you approach, said, 'This is what I'm going to do.’”

A sentiment shared by Dina.

"What a courageous, brave and unselfish thing to do,” Fiona’s former colleague said of the tour. “Because it wasn't about her, it was about the research that would save other people."