Isabelle Mergault, devastated by cancer, experienced a complicated end of life. Laurent Ruquier made moving confessions about the last moments of the woman who was his faithful friend.
Isabelle Mergault has left a big void in the lives of those close to her, since her death on March 20 at the age of 67 from cancer. And it is not Laurent Ruquier, his long-time friend, who will say the opposite. “We always have trouble considering or imagining that this could happen.“, he confided to Paris Matchstill shaken by this loss. The one who knew the late actress and director for several decades also made revelations about her illness and her end of life…
Isabelle Mergault facing cancer: initially, “she took it lightly”
Isabelle Mergault suffered from lung cancer and, visibly, her condition had deteriorated recently. “For a long time, she fought, she hoped to get through it, so we believed in it with her, obviously. We were optimistic but in recent weeks, we understood that it would not be so simple“, explained the host.
Laurent Ruquier knew that his friend, who leaves behind her two adopted daughters Maya, 17, and Iris, 12, was suffering from cancer, but she played down the situation so much that he ended up reassuring himself: “She told me about her lung problem, but initially it was just a small piece that had to be removed. She took it lightly. In any case, she tried to make us believe that she was taking it lightly… She had also returned to ‘Grosses Têtes’. Then it got worse“.
Isabelle Mergault “no longer stood on her feet”: her last difficult moments
And if Isabelle Mergault never spoke publicly about her illness, beyond her modesty, it is also because she did not want to be ostracized. “In our professions, when we learn that someone is ill, we will inevitably offer them fewer roles, fewer projects… She didn’t want that! This is why artists hesitate to express themselves when they are not doing well.“, assured the host of the Big Heads.
The actress’s friend – whom she had refused to marry – was however able to say goodbye, coming to see her shortly before her death. “One of her friends called me to advise me to come see her one last time, even though she didn’t want me to come anymore.“, he explained before adding: “Three weeks ago, she still told me that she would know by the end of March if she would still be with us or not“.
Another of her best friends, Jean-Louis Barcelona, had spent Christmas at her house and had already noticed that she was unfortunately very weak: “She didn’t eat much anymore. First of all, she wasn’t a big eater (…) On December 31, she couldn’t stand on her legs anymore, she couldn’t stand the chemo well. Doctors hospitalized her to revive her“. The comedian’s funeral is to take place on March 30 at the Montmartre cemetery in Paris.
