Olivia Newton-John’s niece has shared details of her heart-breaking last days before she died of breast cancer at age 73.
In an interview with A Current Affair, Tottie Goldsmith broke down in tears as she reflected on her aunty’s last days of her decades-long health battle.
“It’s not a shock, we’ve known how sick she’s been, especially in the last five days,” she told Tracy Grimshaw.
Tottie then went on to reveal her heart-wrenching final moments with Olivia, saying, “I couldn’t get to America in time and I wanted to say goodbye, so I asked [her husband John] if he could hold the phone up to her ear… But he got me on FaceTime so I managed to see her.”
“I told her all the things I needed to say,” Tottie continued. “She was leaving us… but I feel like she got it.”
She then shared an emotional conversation she had with her aunty while she was undergoing treatment.
She said, “There was one day at the Olivia Newtown John Centre and she was really skinny and unwell and I said to her, ‘Are you afraid of dying’, and she said, ‘Plonker, I’m not afraid. I’ve done more in my life that I could have ever imagined.'”
“She’s struggled with a lot of pain and it’s been a tough road,” Tottie added.
“It wasn’t just the cancer that got her. It was other complications and being in a hospital with a very susceptible immune system.”
Tracey then asked Tottie what Olivia was most proud of in her life, and without skipping a beat, Tottie responded “Chloe” before breaking down in tears.
Chloe is Olivia’s daughter who she shared with ex-husband Matt Lattanzi.
“She loved that girl so much. Chloe’s doing it really tough, but she’s been amazing.”
At the end of the interview, Tottie said her family would be accepting Victorian Premier Dan Andrews’ offer of a state funeral for Olivia, as she said, “On behalf of not just our family, but I think Australia needs it.”
Image credits: A Current Affair / Instagram
This article first appeared on OverSixty.