A WOMAN who tried to kill her husband in an act of mercy more than a decade ago has taken her own life at a Swiss euthanasia clinic.

In 1999, toymaker and artist Vicki Wood walked free from court after admitting the attempted murder of Tim Wood, who was diagnosed with chronic dementia and later Parkinson's disease. He died nine months later.

After travelling to Zurich-based Dignitas with a friend, Mrs Wood, 67, took her life on Friday after suffering from a debilitating physical illness that meant she could no longer work, which was described as her "lifeblood". The condition was not thought to be have been related to dementia.

Mrs Wood's hearing in Exeter, which saw her banned from ever being alone with her husband again, was seen as a watershed in the debate on assisted dying in Britain.

The couple, who were married for around 20 years and well-known in South Devon, were both members of a society that advocated euthanasia.

In common with her husband, Mrs Wood had made a "living will", indicating she did not want to receive life-prolonging treatment in the event of serious illness.

In an obituary agreed by Mrs Wood and sent to the Western Morning News, friend and journalist Andy Christian wrote "despite the setbacks, Vicki Wood led a bountiful life".

It went on: "She was a seeker of new experiences, a pioneer gallery owner, an enthusiastic collector, a loving wife and an enviable godmother."

Mr Christian added: "I remember Tim and Vicki as a happy couple. They were always full of fun and we shared serious conversations and lots of laughter."

The Woods lived in a converted chapel in the village of Harbertonford, near Totnes.

They became members of the Voluntary Euthanasia Society – which has been campaigning since 1935 to legalise assisted suicide – shortly after Mr Wood was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 1995.

Such was their advocacy, they both took part in debates about assisted suicide in the media.

The couple appeared in a 1995 BBC documentary about euthanasia in which Mr Wood said: "The difficult thing, I think, is for a willing helper like Vicki. It is going to be far harder for her."

Eleven years ago, Mrs Wood was sentenced to two years' probation at Exeter Crown Court after a merciful judge spared her the typical sentence handed down for attempted murder.

The court heard how, as they lay in bed together, listening to Beethoven and eating doughnuts, Mrs Wood put a pillow over her husband's head.

But the attempted mercy killing failed when Mr Wood complained he could not breathe, struggled and fell out of bed.

After the trial, Mrs Wood told the WMN: "Tim asked 'why are you crying?' I said 'because I tried to kill you' and then he said 'that's all right – stop crying'."

She remained unrepentant about trying to kill her husband since it would have freed him of the "living hell" of dementia.

She told the WMN in 2002: "I feel like I let Tim down. He went on for nine more months after that."

The couple met when Mrs Wood moved from London to Dartmouth, where Mr Wood was a teacher at Britannia Royal Naval College. The couple, both members of the Devon Guild of Craftsmen, made acclaimed wooden toys and sophisticated clockwork machines.

Their work included a motorised Spanish Armada for Buckland Abbey, near Yelverton, Devon, the stately home once owned by Sir Francis Drake.

Moving back to South Devon after a brief time living in Yorkshire, Mrs Wood opened the prominent and "magical" Number 7 workshop and gallery on Totnes high street.

Mr Christian added: "Vicki has touched and enriched the lives of so many of her friends and fellow makers. She leaves a gap which will only be partially filled by the works she has left behind.

"For those of us who are lucky enough to remember her bright, questioning eyes and warm, intelligent smile she has passed on something of immeasurable good."

Mrs Wood is the latest of more than 100 Britons to travel to Digintas to take their own lives, hoping their partner will escape prosecution.

Years after her court case, assisted dying remains contentious. Calls for it to be legalised have been countered by claims the law would fall victim to abuse.

The Director of Public Prosecutions recently issued new guidelines outlining the factors he regarded as relevant in deciding whether or not to prosecute assisted suicides.

In January, a judge criticised the Crown Prosecution Service for pursuing an attempted murder case against Kay Gilderdale, who was characterised as a loving mother, who helped her seriously ill daughter to die.

Last month, Somerset-based author Terry Pratchett, who has Alzheimer's, called for the advent of a euthanasia tribunal in his Richard Dimbleby lecture.