Fiona Phillips’ ‘painful’ days as Alzheimer’s leaves star unable to wash hair

The much-loved broadcaster was sixty-one when she learned she had early-onset Alzheimer’s disease back in 2022 – her family has opened up about how the disease is progressing

The star’s husband quit his job as a top telly executive to care for his wife

TV presenter Fiona Phillips, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease three years ago, has opened up about her everyday life with the condition. Television executive Martin Frizzell, who has been married to Fiona for 28 years, spoke of his wife’s vulnerability in the couple’s joint memoir titled Remember When: My Life with Alzheimer’s.

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 is the UK’s leading cause of death for the last ten years.

Former Mirror columnist Fiona, 64, initially thought she was having menopause symptoms when she first started experiencing “brain fog and anxiety”. The mum-of-two went onto be diagnosed with the same devastating condition her parents suffered from, with the star caring for them both.

READ MORE: Fiona Phillips’ husband reveals her heartbreaking daily routine after Alzheimer’s diagnosis

Fiona and Martin
Fiona and Martin have opened up on their journey with her Alzheimer’s (Image: Alan Davidson/REX/Shutterstock)

Martin, who spent ten years at the helm of ITV This Morning, stepped down from his position in February to care for Fiona, taking on many tasks he had once taken for granted. The couple employ a trained carer to help too, with the 66-year-old explaining that on bad, confused days his wife demands to see her parents who have sadly passed away.

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…

” I wash Fiona’s hair because she wouldn’t know what shampoo or conditioner to use or how wet her hair needs to be or that she must rinse the soap suds out afterwards. And most nights I’ll say, ‘ Right, we need to brush our teeth before we go to bed, ‘ and I’ll put the toothpaste on the brush and hand it to her. “

Martin and Fiona married in 1997 and went onto have sons Nat and Mackenzie. With her Alzheimer’s disease progressing, Martin heartbreakingly shared that his wife sometimes forgets they are married, while Fiona told how she much she was struggling to accept the diagnosis in the beginning.

Fiona
Fiona is most famous for presenting breakfast show GMTV(Image: Press Association)

Martin explained that while Fiona can dress herself, she doesn’t do it” correctly “and sometimes puts things on the wrong way round. He also revealed his wife becomes very fond of one piece of clothing and will want to wear it” over and over again. “

Fiona is best known for presenting ITV breakfast programme GMTV Today. The star began her career in local radio and was also a Daily Mirror columnist and Loose Women panellist.

And while the presenter feels disconnected from her family as her illness progresses, her husband said he can get lonely”. It feels selfish to say that because this is not about me – it’s about Fiona and she’s the one who is really suffering in all this, “said Martin.

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” She’s the one who feels lonely and scared and is often in pain. “

Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer’s by Fiona Phillips (Macmillan, £22), is published July 17

Fiona Phillips’ ‘painful’ days as Alzheimer’s leaves star unable to wash hair

The much-loved broadcaster was sixty-one when she learned she had early-onset Alzheimer’s disease back in 2022 – her family has opened up about how the disease is progressing

The star’s husband quit his job as a top telly executive to care for his wife

TV presenter Fiona Phillips, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease three years ago, has opened up about her everyday life with the condition. Television executive Martin Frizzell, who has been married to Fiona for 28 years, spoke of his wife’s vulnerability in the couple’s joint memoir titled Remember When: My Life with Alzheimer’s.

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 is the UK’s leading cause of death for the last ten years.

Former Mirror columnist Fiona, 64, initially thought she was having menopause symptoms when she first started experiencing “brain fog and anxiety”. The mum-of-two went onto be diagnosed with the same devastating condition her parents suffered from, with the star caring for them both.

READ MORE: Fiona Phillips’ husband reveals her heartbreaking daily routine after Alzheimer’s diagnosis

Fiona and Martin
Fiona and Martin have opened up on their journey with her Alzheimer’s (Image: Alan Davidson/REX/Shutterstock)

Martin, who spent ten years at the helm of ITV This Morning, stepped down from his position in February to care for Fiona, taking on many tasks he had once taken for granted. The couple employ a trained carer to help too, with the 66-year-old explaining that on bad, confused days his wife demands to see her parents who have sadly passed away.

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…

” I wash Fiona’s hair because she wouldn’t know what shampoo or conditioner to use or how wet her hair needs to be or that she must rinse the soap suds out afterwards. And most nights I’ll say, ‘ Right, we need to brush our teeth before we go to bed, ‘ and I’ll put the toothpaste on the brush and hand it to her. “

Martin and Fiona married in 1997 and went onto have sons Nat and Mackenzie. With her Alzheimer’s disease progressing, Martin heartbreakingly shared that his wife sometimes forgets they are married, while Fiona told how she much she was struggling to accept the diagnosis in the beginning.

Fiona
Fiona is most famous for presenting breakfast show GMTV(Image: Press Association)

Martin explained that while Fiona can dress herself, she doesn’t do it” correctly “and sometimes puts things on the wrong way round. He also revealed his wife becomes very fond of one piece of clothing and will want to wear it” over and over again. “

Fiona is best known for presenting ITV breakfast programme GMTV Today. The star began her career in local radio and was also a Daily Mirror columnist and Loose Women panellist.

And while the presenter feels disconnected from her family as her illness progresses, her husband said he can get lonely”. It feels selfish to say that because this is not about me – it’s about Fiona and she’s the one who is really suffering in all this, “said Martin.

Article continues below

” She’s the one who feels lonely and scared and is often in pain. “

Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer’s by Fiona Phillips (Macmillan, £22), is published July 17

Naomi Osaka ‘doubled’ her wildest tennis dreams – and her next step might be her biggest yet

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka shared a candid Instagram post saying that the expectations of others have prevented her from enjoying her tennis journey despite “doubling my wildest dreams”

Osaka failed to progress beyond the third round at the All England Club this year(Image: Getty Images)

Following an emotional post-game press conference, tennis champ Naomi Osaka took to social media to share some candid thoughts. In a message to her followers, 27-year old Osaka says that she is determined to enjoy her tennis journey “no matter how long or short it may be”.

On July 7, 2025, the four-time Grand Slam winner shared a lengthy post on her Instagram grid, entitled “Expectations” saying in the caption she had “some thoughts in my head I had to get out”. In the post, she details a conversation with her dad that stuck with her.

“Recently I had a talk with my dad…something he said really stuck with me,” the post begins. She goes on to say that at 59 her dad related feeling closer to the end of his life than the beginning and thinks her tennis career is similar.

 Naomi Osaka of Japan plays a backhand against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Osaka is the Former World No. 1(Image: ISI Photos via Getty Images)

“I didn’t understand what he was trying to say to me and truthfully the topic made me panic”, Osaka admits, though she says eventually she was struck with realisation.

“I’ve been playing tennis since I was 3, playing professionally since I was 14 and I’m 27 now. I’ve lived almost my entire life playing this sport and I guess it’s true, I am closer to the end than the beginning.

“When I was younger my dream was to hold the US Open trophy, winning it seemed like a fairy tale.” She goes on to say that she has “doubled my wildest dreams” having won the US Open twice – once in 2018 and once in 2020 – but she still feels pressure to perform.

“Somehow I let my expectations of myself and the expectations of others prevent me from enjoying the rest of my journey no matter how long or short it may be.” Osaka concludes with a promise to “enjoy the times” and also see her daughter “reap the fruits of my labour”.

For more stories like this subscribe to our weekly newsletter, The Weekly Gulp, for a curated roundup of trending stories, poignant interviews, and viral lifestyle picks from The Mirror’s Audience U35 team delivered straight to your inbox.

Speaking on the pressure Osaka faces, Stephanie Hilborne OBE, CEO of Women in Sport, told The Mirror that the pressure to perform is often heightened for female elite athletes.

” Naomi has four major titles, seven WTA tour-level singles, and has used her platform to campaign for racial justice, but still may feel the need to blaze the trail for mothers, prove the doubters wrong, continue to challenge the stereotypes that tell girls and women they don’t belong in sport. “

Hilborne says female elite players have to develop” exceptional resilience “and” Naomi is no exception”. She adds that the the” never-ending barrage of online abuse “is also a factor that the public should be aware of and that” there is an additional horrific layer of misogyny when it comes to women, and especially Black women”.

Osaka’s Instagram post was shared a few days after her loss to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova where she failed to progress beyond the third round at the All England Club. The former World No. 1 was visibly and understandably disheartened in her post-game conference, which was widely circulated on social media.

Image of Osaka at a post-game press conference
Osaka has called out media groups like ESPN for increased coverage of her post-loss and when she is visibly upset(Image: AP)

Osaka expressed her frustration at the media for the increased attention and scrutiny she receives after losses, especially when she is visibly upset. She called out media groups like ESPN in particular, writing on Threads: “Bro why is it every time I do a press conference after a loss the ESPNs and blog gotta clip it and put it up.”

She continued:” Wtf, why don’t they clip my press conferences after I win? Like why push the narrative that I’m always sad?

“Sure I was disappointed a couple hours ago, now I’m motivated to do better. That’s human emotions. The way they clip me I feel like I should be fake happy all the time”.

Article continues below

Naomi Osaka ‘doubled’ her wildest tennis dreams – and her next step might be her biggest yet

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka shared a candid Instagram post saying that the expectations of others have prevented her from enjoying her tennis journey despite “doubling my wildest dreams”

Osaka failed to progress beyond the third round at the All England Club this year(Image: Getty Images)

Following an emotional post-game press conference, tennis champ Naomi Osaka took to social media to share some candid thoughts. In a message to her followers, 27-year old Osaka says that she is determined to enjoy her tennis journey “no matter how long or short it may be”.

On July 7, 2025, the four-time Grand Slam winner shared a lengthy post on her Instagram grid, entitled “Expectations” saying in the caption she had “some thoughts in my head I had to get out”. In the post, she details a conversation with her dad that stuck with her.

“Recently I had a talk with my dad…something he said really stuck with me,” the post begins. She goes on to say that at 59 her dad related feeling closer to the end of his life than the beginning and thinks her tennis career is similar.

 Naomi Osaka of Japan plays a backhand against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Osaka is the Former World No. 1(Image: ISI Photos via Getty Images)

“I didn’t understand what he was trying to say to me and truthfully the topic made me panic”, Osaka admits, though she says eventually she was struck with realisation.

“I’ve been playing tennis since I was 3, playing professionally since I was 14 and I’m 27 now. I’ve lived almost my entire life playing this sport and I guess it’s true, I am closer to the end than the beginning.

“When I was younger my dream was to hold the US Open trophy, winning it seemed like a fairy tale.” She goes on to say that she has “doubled my wildest dreams” having won the US Open twice – once in 2018 and once in 2020 – but she still feels pressure to perform.

“Somehow I let my expectations of myself and the expectations of others prevent me from enjoying the rest of my journey no matter how long or short it may be.” Osaka concludes with a promise to “enjoy the times” and also see her daughter “reap the fruits of my labour”.

For more stories like this subscribe to our weekly newsletter, The Weekly Gulp, for a curated roundup of trending stories, poignant interviews, and viral lifestyle picks from The Mirror’s Audience U35 team delivered straight to your inbox.

Speaking on the pressure Osaka faces, Stephanie Hilborne OBE, CEO of Women in Sport, told The Mirror that the pressure to perform is often heightened for female elite athletes.

” Naomi has four major titles, seven WTA tour-level singles, and has used her platform to campaign for racial justice, but still may feel the need to blaze the trail for mothers, prove the doubters wrong, continue to challenge the stereotypes that tell girls and women they don’t belong in sport. “

Hilborne says female elite players have to develop” exceptional resilience “and” Naomi is no exception”. She adds that the the” never-ending barrage of online abuse “is also a factor that the public should be aware of and that” there is an additional horrific layer of misogyny when it comes to women, and especially Black women”.

Osaka’s Instagram post was shared a few days after her loss to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova where she failed to progress beyond the third round at the All England Club. The former World No. 1 was visibly and understandably disheartened in her post-game conference, which was widely circulated on social media.

Image of Osaka at a post-game press conference
Osaka has called out media groups like ESPN for increased coverage of her post-loss and when she is visibly upset(Image: AP)

Osaka expressed her frustration at the media for the increased attention and scrutiny she receives after losses, especially when she is visibly upset. She called out media groups like ESPN in particular, writing on Threads: “Bro why is it every time I do a press conference after a loss the ESPNs and blog gotta clip it and put it up.”

She continued:” Wtf, why don’t they clip my press conferences after I win? Like why push the narrative that I’m always sad?

“Sure I was disappointed a couple hours ago, now I’m motivated to do better. That’s human emotions. The way they clip me I feel like I should be fake happy all the time”.

Article continues below

Amal Clooney reveals why she has strict ban on phones inside her home with George

Amal Clooney, a lawyer for human rights, lives with her husband George, an actor in Hollywood, and their eight-year-old twins Alexander and Ella in a palatial pile in the English countryside.

George Clooney’s wife, Amal, has revealed the strict rule her guests must stick to(Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images)

George Clooney’s wife, Amal, has revealed the strict rule her guests must stick to when they are visiting the couple’s home. The human rights lawyer, 47, and Hollywood A-lister, 64, live in a sprawling mansion in the English countryside with their twins Alexander and Ella, eight.

The couple keep their children firmly out of the spotlight and are only seen themselves if they’re attending an event. And now Amal who married George at a lavish bash in Venice in 2014, surrounded by their celebrity pals, has revealed that she has banned anyone from using their phones when they are in her home to protect her family’s privacy.

Amal Clooney, George
Amal Clooney, lives in a palatial pile in the English countryside with her Hollywood A-lister husband, George, and their twins Alexander and Ella, eight(Image: Getty Images for Tony Awards Pro)

She said, “Creating private moments and spaces is becoming increasingly challenging,” when talking to Glamour about living her life as one of the most famous couples in the showbiz industry. But that’s also the reason we frequently entertain guests at home. I now “use a phone basket to take everyone’s phones away”!

“It’s crucial to strike a balance between having time with your family and your friends so that they can have a safe and open conversation.”

“And I would say that having a parent makes you more troubled by some of the intrusions.

“So we try our best to keep our children at a minimum.”

We never post our children’s photos online, nor do we do that.

George, the actor of acclaim who has a string of big blockbusters under his belt since taking the stage in E. R., frequently discusses the need to maintain privacy.

Brad Pitt and another A-lister, Brad Pitt, shared an interview with GQ magazine that revealed that six prominent Hollywood celebrities are immediately targeted by the paparazzi when they leave their homes.

He said that he and Amal “do not want pictures of their kids out there,” adding that many people – even those with a respectable amount of fame – manage to kind of lead normal lives, walk around the streets of New York without being followed, and other similar things.

“And there are five or six of us, I don’t know, where it’s never subsided. And there has never been a time when someone says, “Hey, let’s take a walk through Central Park without getting hammered.” Simply put, it hasn’t yet occurred. It will, of course. However, it hasn’t yet taken place.

Continue reading the article.

I don’t want pictures of my kids because I have a protection goal.

We deal with very serious issues, and we don’t want to see any of our children’s photos online.

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Coronation Street star Georgia May Foote’s ‘nightmare’ struggle finding acting work

Former Coronation Street star Georgia May Foote revealed her struggle in finding acting work after leaving the long-running soap

Coronation Street star Georgia May Foote’s ‘nightmare’ struggle finding acting work(Image: TV Grab)

Former Coronation Street star Georgia May Foote opened up about her struggle finding acting work after leaving the long-running soap. The 34-year-old soap actress, who is rumoured to have split from her husband Kris Evans after being spotted without her ring, had to start a crowdfunding page to raise £12,000 after her beauty business burned down.

Georgia’s character, Katy Armstrong, joined the series in 2010 and departed in 2015. Katy was killed in an off-screen car accident in Portugal in 2017. Georgia went on to appear on many talk shows and reality shows, including Celebrity Juice, Strictly Come Dancing, Saturday Kitchen, and more.

READ MORE: ‘Spectacular’ Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra gets £10 a month price cut

Corrie's Georgia May Foote
Georgia opened up about struggling to find work(Image: Getty Images for Co-op Live)

She also appeared as Gracie Bradshaw for one episode of Doctors and was a series regular in the American fantasy-adventure series The Outpost between 2020 and 2021.

In a new chat with the Sausage on a Fork podcast, she admitted her work dried up after returning from Serbia from filming The Outpost. She said: “I came back in the December of 2020 and I just realised, ‘Oh my God, there’s no work.’

“Everything that got stopped filming in the UK then got put on a back burner, and then there was a backlog of what was about to start filming. Then everything behind that took four years to come out, then we had the writers’ strikes.”

Georgia May Foote
Georgia’s business also burned down(Image: gmfnails/Instagram)

She continued: “It’s just been a nightmare. And that’s why this has been the quietest I’ve ever been in my life. I think a lot of actors around the world will say the exact time.”

Georgia’s struggles continued when her beauty business, a nail salon, caught on fire and she had to start a crowdfunding page to get the company, as well as other businesses affected by the fire, up and running again.

“Within two hours the whole building was alight, and the whole thing burnt down,” the actress said. “We weren’t allowed back in there and nothing has been salvaged.

“Four years’ worth of products and stock and everything. We can’t get back to work without that stuff. It’s thousands of pounds of stuff. You can’t just go and buy it.

“I did start a fundraiser to raise some money for these ladies to help us get back on our feet and build our stock back up again that we’ve lost.

“It’s passed the £12,000 mark. I’m really happy. It makes me really emotional to speak about it. I just know it’s a lot of women’s only income. I’m lucky that I still do my voiceovers and I do have jobs coming in.

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“But, at the same time, I lost a lot of money in that fire. But people have lost entire homes worth of stuff that can’t be replaced.”

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