Culture

Olivia Newton-John Would Like You To Know She’s Very Much Alive

"The rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated, to quote a very famous quote."

by Sam Langford  3 January 2019
Olivia Newton-John says the rumours she's dying of cancer are greatly exaggerated.

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2019 kicked off with a real grim rumour: reports started to circulate claiming that beloved singer Olivia Newton-John was on the verge of death from cancer. Today, there’s been a surprisingly wholesome twist, with Newton-John herself appearing in a video to tell us she’s actually very much alive, and “doing great”.

“The rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated, to quote a very famous quote,” she says in the video, laughing.

“I’m doing great and I want to wish all of you the happiest, healthiest 2019 that’s possible. Thank you all for your wonderful love and support, for me and for my Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness Centre in Melbourne.”

The rumours of her death didn’t come out of nowhere — it is true that Newton-John has been fighting recurring bouts of cancer since 1992, and she’s still being treated for the most recent diagnosis of stage 4 cancer in 2017. That’s doesn’t mean she’s on death’s door, though, and her family and people close to her have all reported that she’s actually doing fine right now.

If you’d like to see her say it for herself, though, you can catch the video below: