Viewers Moved by Final Interview of '70 Up' Participant Nick Hitchon

The latest installment of the enduring documentary series "70 Up" has resonated deeply with viewers, particularly the segments featuring participant Nick Hitchon. The first episode, which aired Tuesday, highlighted Hitchon's journey from a seven-year-old with a fascination for the moon to his poignant final interview, filmed just three days before his death.

"70 Up" is the continuation of a project that began in 1964, with filmmakers revisiting a group of participants every seven years. While the series was originally intended to conclude with "63 Up" in 2019 following the death of its original director, Michael Apted, Hitchon's battle with cancer prompted filmmakers to return.

Academy Award-winning director Asif Kapadia took the helm for this latest iteration. In 2023, Hitchon, then 65, sent an email to producer Claire Lewis indicating his intention to participate in "70 Up," though Lewis recognized the underlying seriousness of his condition. A camera crew traveled to Hitchon in the U.S. for a final interview, which was completed just three days before his passing.

Viewers shared their emotional responses on social media, with many expressing that Hitchon's segment brought them to tears. His childhood dream of "find[ing] out about the moon" was contrasted with his later struggles, which he candidly discussed in his final interview. Hitchon, the son of a Yorkshire farmer, studied at Oxford University before moving to the U.S. in the early 1980s. There, he established a career as a nuclear fusion expert and university professor in Wisconsin. He married his university girlfriend, Jacqui, and they had a son, an event Hitchon described as a moment of "pure, unadulterated joy."

Footage from "63 Up" was shown, where Hitchon revealed his cancer diagnosis in 2019, stating he was seriously ill and not focusing on the long-term future. In his final interview for "70 Up," Hitchon also disclosed a stroke he suffered in 2022. He remarked on the surprise of his doctors that he was still alive, adding that his illness had been difficult for his family, including his second wife, Cryss Brunner.

"This section with Nick is hard, and I think we all know that he's no longer with us. God bless him," one viewer wrote. Another commented, "I'm bawling already knowing Nick is no longer with us."

Hitchon described filming the show as "tremendously important" to him. In his last words to the crew, he expressed that when they left, he would feel "a hole in things that I've not experienced since I was six."

Hitchon's brother, Andrew, wrote that Nick was a "determined character" and likely wanted to "finish what he had started." He hoped that "70 Up" would provide closure for all the cast members and that filming the last interview offered similar closure for Nick.

The final episode of "70 Up," featuring Hitchon's last appearance, is scheduled to air on September 22.