Actress Prunella Scales and her actor husband Timothy West lived together through her Alzheimer’s diagnosis, and they were able to support one another for a long time.
Actress Prunella Scales has died just months after her actor husband Timothy West. The Fawlty Towers’ Sybil star died aged 93 following Timothy’s death in November 2024.
Her sons’ statement read, “Our beloved mother Prunella Scales passed away peacefully at home in London yesterday,” and they confirmed it. She was 93.
“Although dementia forced her retirement from a remarkable acting career of nearly 70 years, she continued to live at home. She was watching Fawlty Towers the day before she died.” They added: “She is survived by two sons and one stepdaughter, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. We would like to thank all those who gave Pru such wonderful care at the end of her life: her last days were comfortable, contented and surrounded by love.”
READ MORE: All Creatures Great and Small Samuel West’s life from famous dad to rebel yearsREAD MORE: Prunella Scales dead: Fawlty Towers star dies just months after actor husband
In 1963, Prunella and Timothy wed, and they had two sons, Samuel West, an actor and director, and Juliet, their stepdaughter. Although it’s unknown when they first met, it’s believed Prunella first portrayed Kate Starling in the BBC sitcom Marriage Lines.
Instead of a white wedding dress, Prunella chose a tailored coat, black gloves, and black heels for their very modest wedding in 1963 at Chelsea Registry Office. She added a fur hat to complete her look.
Prunella acknowledged her regrets about not getting married in a church on their 40th wedding anniversary. In front of their children, they made the decision to have a second chance and reaffirm their vows in 2003.
Timothy appeared in EastEnders, Coronation Street, Gentleman Jack, and Dad’s Army. When Prunella claimed that her husband and she would soon become “very depressed” they would become.
Their marriage was their greatest success, despite their success in acting. She told The Times, “I think I’m a very lucky lady. I’m married to a very interesting individual, and I have a strong interest in him.
“So that’s not a problem,” I would be a different person if I married someone I didn’t get along with and had an unhappy marriage. Prunella revealed that her short-term memory was fading in January 2013.
A year later her husband confirmed that she was living with Alzheimer’s disease. The couple appeared together in 10 series of Great Canal Journeys for Channel 4 from 2014 until her Alzheimer’s reportedly progressed to the point where they had to stop in 2020.
The Bradford-born icon, however, claimed that their relationship had not changed since receiving the diagnosis, and that Prunella later said, “I have got to know him better and better and better.”
Timothy continued, “I am aware that things will change a little bit, but it has been a long time and we have managed pretty well overall. We never, in my opinion, ever consider, “Oh no.”
The actress continued, “I have been asked to spend the rest of my life with a person I respect very much, with whom I have many disagreements, and with whom I can disagree quite happily.”
Although Prunella frequently didn’t think about her condition, Timothy claimed that the pair “somehow coped” with the news. Timothy revealed his difficulties with communicating with his wife during a chapter of Piers Morgan’s Life Stories.
There isn’t much we can say about a concert, play, or movie because Pru will have a fairly hazy memory, he said. She might have enjoyed her evening and will likely discuss the acting, but she is unable to discuss what the play was saying.
However, the couple resisted giving further details, with him saying, “The sad thing is that you just watch the gradual disappearance of the person you knew, loved, and were very close to.” There is still a lot of her left, but we still enjoy life, and Pru and I can do many things together.
It’s manageable if you live it every day. It’s sad when you start thinking about the past and saying, “Oh, what a shame she can’t do that anymore, she doesn’t appreciate that anymore, and we can’t talk about this anymore.”
Source: Mirror
Leave a Reply