Conductor Edward Downes dies at 85 in Swiss clinic

British conductor Edward Downes and his wife have died at an assisted suicide clinic in Switzerland, their family said Tuesday.

The family said Downes, 85, and his 74-year-old wife Joan died Friday "peacefully and under circumstances of their own choosing" at a Zurich clinic run by the group Dignitas.

The family statement said Downes had become almost blind and increasingly deaf. His wife, a former dancer, choreographer and television producer, had devoted years to working as his assistant.

"After 54 happy years together, they decided to end their own lives rather than continue to struggle with serious health problems," the statement said.

Dignitas refused to …