Three years ago, Fiona Phillips was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s before her husband, Martin Frizell, left his job as the boss of This Morning to look after her
Martin Frizell has given a heartbreaking insight into Fiona Phillip’s life now (Image: Getty Images Europe)
Martin Frizell has given a heartbreaking insight into Fiona Phillip’s life now after her devastating Alzheimer’s diagnosis three years ago. Fiona, 64, initially thought her symptoms, including brain fog, anxiety and a lack of interest in her marriage, were due to menopause until she was told she had the neurodegenerative condition, which tragically took the lives of both her parents.
Martin, 66, who last year gave up his job heading This Morning to look after his wife, who he wed in 1997, has admitted that Fiona – with whom he shares two sons – now needs ‘a lot of help’, including with showering, washing her hair, brushing her teeth and getting dressed.
READ MORE: Inside Fiona Phillips and Eamonn Holmes’ feud as she reveals what she hated about him
Martin Frizell and Fiona Phillips have been married since 1997(Image: Corbis via Getty Images)
Opening up about Fiona’s daily routine, he writes in her upcoming memoir: Remember when? My Life With Alzheimer’s, which is being serialised in the Mail: “It is January 2025 as I write this, and Fiona needs a lot of help.
“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 explains that while Fiona can dress herself, she doesn’t do it “correctly” and sometimes puts things on the wrong way round.
He also reveals his wife becomes very fond of one piece of clothing and will want to wear it “over and over again.”
Admitting that Fiona, who was one of the UK’s most in-demand presenters, hosting GMTV for more than decade, is “still very stubborn”, Martin, heartbreakingly, concedes she doesn’t like being told what to do and “rails against it”.
Fiona recently admitted she had no idea she was suffering from Alzheimer’s before her diagnosis three years ago. The former GMTV star, initially put her symptoms, including brain fog, anxiety and a lack of interest in her marriage down to menopause. However, three years ago she was tragically told that she had the neurodegenerative disease, which both her parents suffered with.
Following Fiona’s diagnosis, Martin quit his job at This Morning after 10 years in 2024, saying he ‘expected his priorities to change’.
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He announced: “Next year I’m expecting my family priorities to change so I need to free up time for them. I love my team at ITV and will miss them and the thrill of live telly but it’s an always on, 24 hours a day, seven days a week commitment and I won’t be able to do both.”
* More information and advice about Alzheimer’s can be found at the Alzheimer’s Society
Three years ago, Fiona Phillips was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s before her husband, Martin Frizell, left his job as the boss of This Morning to look after her
Martin Frizell has given a heartbreaking insight into Fiona Phillip’s life now (Image: Getty Images Europe)
Martin Frizell has given a heartbreaking insight into Fiona Phillip’s life now after her devastating Alzheimer’s diagnosis three years ago. Fiona, 64, initially thought her symptoms, including brain fog, anxiety and a lack of interest in her marriage, were due to menopause until she was told she had the neurodegenerative condition, which tragically took the lives of both her parents.
Martin, 66, who last year gave up his job heading This Morning to look after his wife, who he wed in 1997, has admitted that Fiona – with whom he shares two sons – now needs ‘a lot of help’, including with showering, washing her hair, brushing her teeth and getting dressed.
READ MORE: Inside Fiona Phillips and Eamonn Holmes’ feud as she reveals what she hated about him
Martin Frizell and Fiona Phillips have been married since 1997(Image: Corbis via Getty Images)
Opening up about Fiona’s daily routine, he writes in her upcoming memoir: Remember when? My Life With Alzheimer’s, which is being serialised in the Mail: “It is January 2025 as I write this, and Fiona needs a lot of help.
“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 explains that while Fiona can dress herself, she doesn’t do it “correctly” and sometimes puts things on the wrong way round.
He also reveals his wife becomes very fond of one piece of clothing and will want to wear it “over and over again.”
Admitting that Fiona, who was one of the UK’s most in-demand presenters, hosting GMTV for more than decade, is “still very stubborn”, Martin, heartbreakingly, concedes she doesn’t like being told what to do and “rails against it”.
Fiona recently admitted she had no idea she was suffering from Alzheimer’s before her diagnosis three years ago. The former GMTV star, initially put her symptoms, including brain fog, anxiety and a lack of interest in her marriage down to menopause. However, three years ago she was tragically told that she had the neurodegenerative disease, which both her parents suffered with.
Following Fiona’s diagnosis, Martin quit his job at This Morning after 10 years in 2024, saying he ‘expected his priorities to change’.
Article continues below
He announced: “Next year I’m expecting my family priorities to change so I need to free up time for them. I love my team at ITV and will miss them and the thrill of live telly but it’s an always on, 24 hours a day, seven days a week commitment and I won’t be able to do both.”
* More information and advice about Alzheimer’s can be found at the Alzheimer’s Society
Oasis fans travelling to their hometown show at Heaton Park have been issued a warning over travel just days before the first concert takes place
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Fans are expected to be travelling from all over the country for the shows at Heaton Park(Image: Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Oasis fans travelling to their concerts at Heaton Park have been issued a travel warning. Brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher will return to their hometown this weekend for the start of five sold-out concerts, playing to 80,000 fans each night. But with such demand comes increased pressure on public transport.
Ticket platform Trainline has seen a 20 per cent increase in passengers travelling to Manchester ahead of Oasis’ historic Heaton Park shows. They say this surge suggests thousands of music fans will travel from all corners of the UK to see the Gallagher’s reunion in their home town. Some towns and cities have sold more than double the usual number of tickets ahead of the Gallagher brothers’ first homecoming concert on Friday.
The band kicked off their historic reunion tour in Cardiff last week. The biggest uplift in bookings to Manchester came from Norwich with a 115 per cent increase, Leeds with 107 per cent and Aberdeen with 98 per cent. Sarah Helppi, UK Country Director at Trainline, said: “Rock’n’ rail is a perfect combination. Thousands of music fans are travelling by train to be part of an iconic summer moment. If you’re joining the tour in the band’s hometown, book as soon as possible to secure a seat.”
Oasis will perform at Manchester’s Heaton Park this weekend (Image: Big Brother Recordings / PR Handout)
One fan travelling from London, Erin Archer, said: “My boyfriend booked our train to Manchester on Trainline as soon as we got the Oasis tickets—it was all done in minutes. It’s made the whole thing feel so easy and stress-free.
“Now we can just look forward to the gig, enjoy the build-up, and soak up every second of Oasis back in their hometown!” But that’s not the only warning fans have been given. Temperatures across Manchester are expected to soar on Friday and Saturday when the legendary band are playing, which will no doubt create a biblical atmosphere.
Experts suggest that thermometers are set to hit almost 30 degrees this weekend. Currently, the chance of rain stands at less than 5 per cent across the entire weekend. The Met Office states that Friday, temperatures could hit as high as 27 degrees at its peak around 4pm, while the lowest, at 4am will be 15 degrees. At 1pm, there will be an orange warning, signifying a level 7 exposure of UV, meaning those in attendance will require sunscreen.
Trainline has seen an overwhelming demand(Image: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)
But as the gig comes to an end, the temperature will drop slightly to a more moderate 22 degrees. On Saturday, for the second sold-out show, the weather will continue to pick up and shows signs that it will not be cooling down any time soon.
Instead, the lowest temperature at 4am, will be 18degrees, while the peak, between 4pm and 7pm will be 27 degrees. Despite the staggering temperatures, the highest UV warning will be at 1pm, which is a level 7. The BBC says of the upcoming weather on Friday: “Friday should then be dry with sunshine throughout the day. Becoming very warm or hot.”
Oasis will perform at Heaton Park on July 11, 12, 16, 19 and 20. Marco Petagna, senior meteorologist at the Met Office, explained that the weather will start to turn balmy on Wednesday, with dry conditions returning after several areas were plunged under thunderstorm warnings last night. The expert said: “I think Wednesday is probably going to be the day when we could start to reach the thresholds of 25 to 28 degrees, depending on where you are.”
He added: “We probably won’t actually reach an official heatwave until around Friday, to give the three consecutive days at those temperatures. But temperatures are going to continue to climb as we go toward the end of the week, and certainly, by Friday and Saturday, we could see 30 degrees, perhaps just nudging into the low 30s.
“At the weekend, we could just start to see humidity increasing a little bit as well and nighttime temperatures look like they are going to be, so it will be starting to become more uncomfortable by night. It’s a bit of a question mark going through the weekend early next week as to how long the heat will last and how high the temperatures will get because some models are sort of pushing the heat away a bit more quickly, whereas others keep the heat going.
“At this stage, it looks as though certainly into next weekend, we should hold on to hot weather across the south of the UK, and temperatures could again certainly get into the low 30s in a few spots.”
Everton are close to ending their striker search with Villarreal’s Thierno Barry expected to fly into Merseyside for a medical before completing a £27m deal.
The formalities are not completed yet, but the move is progressing with manager David Moyes ready to clinch Everton’s biggest deal of the summer so far.
Barry had a £34.5m release clause in his Villarreal contract, but Everton expect to pay a lower fee for the 22-year-old, who scored 11 goals and provided four assists in 38 games last season as the Spanish club finished fifth in La Liga to qualify for the Champions League.
He will add to Everton’s attacking resources after Dominic Calvert-Lewin left at the end of his contract.
Forward Armando Broja also exited when his loan ended, returning to Chelsea without the deal being made permanent.
Barry was born in Lyon and left French club Sochaux aged 19 to play in the Belgian second division with Beveren.
Australia’s preparations to face the British and Irish Lions have suffered a major setback after first-choice fly-half Noah Lolesio was ruled out of the series.
The 25-year-old was carried off the pitch in the Wallabies’ 21-18 win over Fiji on Sunday with an apparent whiplash injury.
He was initially discharged from hospital later that day, raising hopes he would be fit to face the tourists. However, after further check-ups, he had surgery on Tuesday afternoon.
Rugby Australia said Lolesio “will spend a period of time away from the game during his rehabilitation”. That absence will span the entirety of the series against the Lions.
Lolesio was left out of Australia’s Rugby World Cup squad in 2023 but has since become the Wallabies’ go-to fly-half under head coach Joe Schmidt.
He started five of the Wallabies’ six Rugby Championship games last year and all four of their autumn internationals in the northern hemisphere.
Ben Donaldson seems most likely to take on the 10 role, with Tom Lynagh – the England-raised 22-year-old son of Wallabies great Michael Lynagh – also in the squad named for the Fiji fixture.
Schmidt could call on the experience of Bernard Foley and James O’Connor to bolster his options.
The first Test against the Lions takes place in Brisbane on 19 July, with the second and third Tests being staged on the following weekends in Melbourne and Sydney.
Tottenham have signed Japan defender Kota Takai from J-League side Kawasaki Frontale for £5m.
The 20-year-old has signed a five-year contract until the summer of 2030 and will be part of Thomas Frank’s first-team squad.
Takai has won four caps for Japan’s senior side, making his international debut in a World Cup qualifier versus China last September.
The defender played a key role in Kawasaki Frontale winning the Japanese Super Cup in 2024 while also being named the nation’s best young player that year.
