Fiona Phillips' husband reveals they were living ‘separate lives' before Alzheimer's diagnosis
The former GMTV host, 64, announced in 2023 that she had been diagnosed with early onset dementia, after initially mistaking her 'brain fog and anxiety' for menopause symptoms.
In her new memoir, Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer's, Frizell, 66, has shared how the couple struggled and grew apart in the years leading up to her diagnosis.
'Nothing I could say seemed to help,' he said of the tough period, which began around 2015, according to an extract obtained by the Daily Mail.
'And I guess like in any relationship, the whole thing spirals. Because I felt she was being moody and critical of everything I said and did, I shut down too.
'We were barely talking and while we were still in the same house we were living quite separate lives.'
Frizell recalled experiencing 'long silences' with his wife of 28 years when they were at home in the evenings - but didn't think it was a symptom of the menopause or Azheimer's.
'I just thought we had hit the wall that so many marriages do as the kids get older – ours were now well into their teens – and maybe as a couple we had just run our course,' he admitted.
Since the diagnosis, Frizell has taken on complete responsibility for the household, from paying bills to chores, which he said he used to 'take for granted.'
To help alleviate some of the pressure from himself and their 23-year-old son MacKenzie, he hired a trained carer.
Recently, Frizell recalled how Phillips thought he had kidnapped her because of 'delusions' brought on by the disease.
In November 2024, he announced he would be stepping down as editor of ITV's This Morning in order to support his wife, after more than a decade of service.
At the time, he wrote: 'Next year I'm expecting my family priorities to change, so I need to free up time for them.'
As of January 2025, he helps Phillips 'brush her teeth and shower', dress herself, eat and drink.
On difficult days where his wife has experienced moments of 'extreme confusion', he shared that she has demanded to see her late parents.
Phillips, who lost her mother to Alzheimer's aged 74 in 2006, previously shared her concerns about how people will 'perceive' her.
'There is still an issue with this disease that the public thinks of old people, bending over a stick, talking to themselves,' she told The Mirror.
'But I'm still here, getting out and about, meeting friends for coffee, going for dinner with Martin, and walking every day.'
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