A book about her life in the public eye and how it’s like to live with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease is written by the much-loved broadcaster and her husband, who also serves as her TV producer. It also includes a painful admission to the hospital.
When TV presenter Fiona Phillips was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2022, her husband Martin Frizzell stuck by their vows of in sickness and in health. But the former This Morning producer, who has been married to Fiona for 28 years, has revealed how living with the brain degenerative condition is becoming more and more painful.
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia in the UK, which causes an ongoing decline of brain functioning including memory, thinking skills and other abilities. The progressive, life-limiting condition has been the UK’s leading cause of death for the last ten years and it’s a cause very close to Martin’s heart after watching his wife suffer with the condition.
“I used to say good days and bad days, now I just say bad days or wretched days, I think wretched is a great word for it,” he told BBC Newsnight in a recent interview. And he also disclosed how the condition has affected his wife. “In the cab ride, 35 minutes, she asked me 72 times, where are we going?'”
And in another interview, he agonized about how she sometimes misunderstood him and thought he was kidnapping her because he had already admitted that she doesn’t recognize him.
READ MORE: Fiona Phillips’ husband reveals her heartbreaking daily routine after Alzheimer’s diagnosis
Martin has been speaking candidly about his wife’s vulnerability ahead of the publication of the couple’s joint memoir titled Remember When: My Life with Alzheimer’s. Speaking to Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary on This Morning, he said: “In the book there’s a photo of her looking great and smiling but what you don’t know is she thought I kidnapped her.”
Martin explained how cruelly severe the illness is, and how Fiona sometimes asks her parents to “go home” despite not realizing their absence. She frequently recognizes me because she isn’t entirely aware of who I am, but she is. She occasionally wants to visit her parents, but I have no desire to say that.
When Fiona, 64, first started experiencing “brain fog and anxiety,” she initially believed she was experiencing menopause symptoms. The star continued to care for the two after receiving the diagnosis of the same devastating condition that her parents had.
Martin, who spent ten years at the helm of ITV This Morning, stepped down from his position in February to care for Fiona. In excerpts from their heartbreaking memoir published in the Daily Mail, he told of his wife’s daily routine. “It is January 2025 as I write this, and Fiona needs a lot of help,” said Martin. “She needs help showering and brushing her teeth. She can do these things physically, but is unable now to think about how she should do them…
Fiona’s hair is washed because she wasn’t sure what shampoo or conditioner to use, how wet her hair is, or how to rinse the soap suds afterward. And on the way home, I’ll say, “Right, we need to brush our teeth before we go to bed,” and I’ll put the toothpaste on the brush.
Nat and Mackenzie were born in 1997, and Martin and Fiona got married. Fiona expressed her heartbreaking acceptance of the diagnosis while Martin heartbrokenly shared that his wife occasionally forgets they are married.
Martin explained that Fiona can dress herself, but that she sometimes doesn’t “correctly” do it. He also stated that his wife will wear one piece of clothing “over and over again” because she is very fond of it.
Fiona is best known for presenting ITV breakfast programme GMTV Today. but began her career in local radio and was also a Daily Mirror columnist and Loose Women panellist.
Fiona Phillips’ book Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer’s (Macmillan, £22) is out now.
Source: Mirror
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