Dr Death begins his ‘DIY suicide’ tour of Britain

Philip Nitschke, the Australian physician dubbed Dr Death, has begun a whistle-stop 'euthanasia tour' of Britain - a week-long series of workshops championing assisted suicide. He began in Bournemouth, on the 'Costa Geriatica', where about 100 middle-aged and elderly people turned up at the Hamilton hotel on Tuesday to hear him talk about his 'DIY suicide kit' and explain various techniques.

Nitschke, who is from the pro-euthanasia group Exit International, showed a film of Betty, his 80-something assistant, demonstrating how to commit suicide with kitchen equipment.

It is the second time that Nitschke has attempted to speak in the Dorset town, which he chose specifically because of the high number of elderly people living there. In 2008 he was stopped at the last minute when local authorities realised it was the infamous 'Dr Death' who had hired their adult education centre. Amid public outcry, all the other venue managers backed out and his tour was abandoned.

On this visit, the Australian was detained for nine hours by immigration officers at Heathrow Airport on Saturday but was eventually granted leave to stay for a week. A workshop in Brighton has been cancelled, but a talk will still take place. Events in Stroud and Glasgow are also scheduled for later this week.

"There was censorship and a wave of hysteria last year, but we knew people in Bournemouth were interested in what we have to say," Nitschke told Bournemouth's Daily Echo. He argues that he is simply championing a basic right. "We provide people with information. That information allows them to make valid choices".

And what is the 61-year-old doctor's own preferred method of suicide? Answer: nembutal, a barbiturate used by vets, washed down with a glass of whisky.