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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Lifestyle
Jessica Murray Social affairs correspondent

‘It’s overwhelming’: woman who was UK’s first surrogate closes agency as demand soars

Kim Cotton at home
Kim Cotton: ‘I get phone calls every day from couples, often in tears. The desperation is just heartbreaking. It’s terrible.’ Photograph: Anna Gordon/The Guardian

Much has changed since Kim Cotton became the UK’s first surrogate 40 years ago, when she was forced to flee hospital on the floor of a car under a blanket, such was the level of media frenzy around her story.

She describes it as a harrowing experience and wishes much of that surrogacy journey had been done differently. “It wasn’t the right way to do surrogacy, but it was the only thing that was offered,” she says.

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