Latest news with #SteveMortimer
ABC News
27-07-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Calls for major dementia investment
Annie Guest: From movie star Bruce Willis to football hero Steve Mortimer and former US President Ronald Reagan, dementia doesn't discriminate. Or does it? Did you know the devastating disease that costs the economy billions and is on track to be the leading cause of death is likely influenced by things like exercise and food. Experts are calling for a big increase in funding for research into both prevention and treatment of dementia, which can affect movement, thinking, memory, language, mood and behaviour. Henry Brodaty is a Scientia Professor at UNSW and a world expert on dementia. Professor Brodaty, your address to the Press Club this week began with the story of 52-year-old Jacob. Who was Jacob and how did he influence you to work in this field? Prof Henry Brodaty: Jacob was my father. He was 52 when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Very bright man, very sociable, active, successful in business and it was very tragic to see his decline over the next seven years until he died of a heart attack aged 59. Annie Guest: Professor Brodaty, what's known about whether dementia rates are getting worse, better or unchanged? Prof Henry Brodaty: If you look at the absolute rates, they're going up and they're going up because the population is aging. So we have now one in six of our population aged 65 or over and that's approaching one in four over the next generation. However, if we look more closely at the number of new cases, per 1,000 in each age group, there may be a drop and the reason is we're getting better at looking after our hearts. Annie Guest: Well, indeed, you've talked about things we can all do to lower dementia risk like healthy diets and exercising our bodies and brains and being socially connected. How firm is the evidence that these things can prevent dementia? Prof Henry Brodaty: Our trial showed that it can improve cognition, coaching with physical activity, nutrition, brain training, depression, anxiety treatment was highly significant in improving cognition. Whether we can actually prove that the number of cases of dementia will be fewer, we need a longer follow-up. Annie Guest: Dementia is on track to be Australia's biggest killer. You're calling for the big increase in funding for treatment and research and you also say that some things that are proven to help and be cost effective in treating our Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia are not properly funded. What are examples of these proven interventions? Prof Henry Brodaty: Well, look at what can happen after diagnosis. People can have what's called cognitive stimulation therapy, groups of maybe eight people meeting twice a week or once a week and getting stimulation and showing that their cognition does improve. Good research from the UK on that. Cognitive rehabilitation therapy. So if I've got dementia, but there are some things I can't do, things that I can't send my emails or I'm having trouble remembering how to do the cooking, which I love to do. If we can work usually with an occupational therapist to work out strategies to overcome those deficits, to compensate, then we can show and there have been good studies, again from the UK, showing that cognitive rehabilitation works. We know that physical exercise can have an effect on slowing the rate of cognitive decline. With research, we can get better services as well, not just about drugs and about causes. We've been very passionate about introducing dementia navigators to help people with dementia and their family carers navigate the very complex system of aged care. Annie Guest: And this is an idea that is a little similar to the breast cancer nurses, is that right? Prof Henry Brodaty: That's right. And we did some modelling of this with PricewaterhouseCoopers and showed that this would be at least cost neutral, if not cost saving. The cost of having the dementia navigators will be offset by reduction in hospital admissions and later admission to nursing homes, which more than covers the cost of hiring the navigators. Annie Guest: Professor Henry Brodaty, thanks very much for joining PM. Prof Henry Brodaty: Thank you very much. Annie Guest: And that's UNSW's Scientia Professor Henry Brodaty.
RNZ News
08-07-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
Origin story: How did an Australian state rugby league competition come to have such a grip on New Zealand?
Blues fans are seen during State of Origin 2023 Photo: PHOTOSPORT For more than four decades Raelene Castle's ritual has remained the same. State of Origin nights are spent parked up on the couch with her dad Bruce, with tension permeating the room. The stakes always feel high. "I don't think I have missed an Origin game, unless I was on a plane at the time, since it originated in the early 80s. We watched it right from as early as I remember," says Castle. "I would sit and watch it with my dad and would just be absolutely glued to the television like it was life or death. We just hated Queensland with a passion when it came Origin time. It was this deep, intense hatred, that's how strong the rivalry was." In a country where sports fans have traditionally been more restrained about their allegiances, Castle is unabashed about her love of NSW. The experienced sports administrator was born in Wagga Wagga - an inland city in south eastern NSW. It was there her father Bruce, a former Kiwis captain, was player-coach of the first grade rugby league team at the Turvey Park club. During Bruce's time leading the senior team at Turvey Park, a young bloke called Steve Mortimer was running around causing havoc in the junior grades. Bruce regaled Castle with these stories while she watched that same Steve Mortimer be carried from the field on the shoulders of his teammates after breaking Queensland's Origin stranglehold in 1985. "Our household always felt this deep connection to these people that Dad knew, and by default I felt connected to," says Castle, whose family moved back to New Zealand when she was about six months old. Raelene Castle went on to be chief executive of the Canterbury Bulldogs, where Steve Mortimer won four premierships during the 1980s. Photo: Photosport / Andrew Cornaga On Wednesday night, tens of thousands of households around the country will tune in for the decider of this year's Origin series. The battle lines have been drawn in advance, with the pre-game banter already flowing on social media. But while Castle was born into her Blues fandom - it is her state of origin, if you will - for others their links to Queensland or NSW are more tenuous. For RNZ's resident league oracle Liam Swiggs, the tribalism the event engenders among New Zealand fans has always seemed a bit incongruous. He says while he is a massive league fan, he is a neutral observer when it comes to Origin. "Sometimes, as a 'full-time' league enthusiast, it's a bit jarring when all of a sudden your mates in New Zealand, who don't watch the Warriors week to week, start popping up on social media with hot takes, strategic breakdowns, and full-blown Maroons vs Blues banter," says Swiggs. "You're sitting there thinking, 'hang on, where was all this passion during round 10'?" So how did an Australian state rugby league competition come to have such a grip on us Kiwis? " They said it wouldn't work, they said it certainly wouldn't last, but when Arthur Beetson ran out onto Lang Park in a maroon jersey to captain his state for the first time, you just knew something special was going to happen. On that night, the spirit of Origin was born." - Phil Gould, Game III, 2012 It was initially written off as a gimmick. When the idea of State of Origin was first mooted in 1980, officials only agreed on a one-off game, believing the idea to be foolhardy. NSW had long dominated the traditional inter-state competition, due in large part to the financial might of the Sydney league clubs, flush with gaming machine takings, being able to lure top Queensland players south. It had come to irk the Queensland faithful that they were perennial whipping boys of NSW teams full of Queenslanders. So a new format was proposed. Rather than the players representing the state they currently played in, the eligibility rules shifted so that players would play for the state they were born in or where they first played league. Queensland took out the historic 1980 clash at Brisbane's Lang Park 20-10, reigniting the interstate rivalry. By the mid-80s State of Origin was a three-game series, and the most anticipated event on the rugby league calendar. It soon ignited something here as well. Former NZ Herald sportswriter and league die-hard Chris Rattue was a keen observer of the series from the early days. He recalls interest in the event "basically exploding overnight" in the late 80s. "It did suddenly grip people here, there's no doubt about it," says Rattue, who retired earlier this year after 40 years in journalism. "What I really remember about those early days was the confrontations, the characters and the controversy. You know, the fights, the violence and the close finishes. It just always seemed to have a lot of drama and controversy. That really hooked people in. Then you had larger than life characters like Wally Lewis, who were just incredible magnets for people." Queensland stalwart Wally Lewis was a star of the Maroons team through the 80s and early 90s. Photo: As a "barometer" of how the event took hold in New Zealand, Rattue says the NZ Herald , which he describes as a "conservative institution" and "rugby orientated" went from ignoring rugby league to running a special late edition back page to ensure State of Origin match report made it in the paper the next day. "Even those dowdy old blokes running the Herald were suddenly interested in rugby league." Rattue believes the success of the series lies in the central conceit of the State of Origin. He says the NSW-Queensland rivalry extends beyond state lines because the themes behind it resonate with wider audiences. "The thing about it is it's just the whole thing is so damn simple how they set it up. There's nothing complex or complicated about it. It's just like 'I like this team, you like that team'." The other aspect that ramped up the interest, according to Rattue, was the "superior" television coverage. State of Origin was not shown live on New Zealand television screens until the early 90s. Prior to that, if you wanted to watch the game, you'd have to trek off to the video store and rent it on VHS a week later. When TVNZ began airing the fixtures, wider New Zealand audiences were exposed to a new style of sports presentation. "I think there was this glamour to it, you know it was from a bigger country and at that point we didn't really have proper professional sport. I just loved the commentary, the way they analysed and dissected the game was on a whole other level," says Rattue. "The way they hyped up the game was different as well. The pre-match build-up gave the game this edge, you know, you felt like it could blow up at any time. The [presenters] were storytellers. They set up these developing themes throughout the series. You have individual confrontations throughout a series like one guy gets over the top of another guy in game one, and that other guy either gets dropped or else he's got to go win his kudos back." The pre-match build-up and television coverage has remained part of the appeal for Origin audiences. Through the late noughties and 2010s, NSW legend and former coach Phil 'Gus' Gould's pregame monologues, rich in hyperbole, became almost as highly anticipated as the game itself. League legend turned commentator Graeme Hughes says when he was starting out as a broadcaster, it was a deliberate choice to offer a different, more animated style to what was on offer in other sports. Hughes - one of six men to represent NSW in both league and cricket - worked on Channel 10's rugby league coverage as a play-by-play caller in the late 80s to early 90s, before joining TVNZ in 1992 to lead its coverage of the Winfield Cup and State of Origin. "We were pretty much in a debate in the early days when we called rugby league in New Zealand that we tried to provide a different style of football call," says Hughes, who is considered one of the key figures in helping New Zealand get a team in what is now the NRL. "My style of football calling, I tended to follow what they did in America. You know, I used to watch and listen to the great American commentators and how much they would either in a quiet period discuss the storylines in whatever sport it is, but then as soon as the game elevated in action, your voice should go with it." "In the early days in New Zealand, especially in rugby union, football callers in those days tended to follow the English commentators at the BBC. And there was a vast difference to the restrained BBC style to the American style. We deliberately decided to up the ante and I think that is still evident in the way the game is called today." Having helped sell league to a nation of rugby watchers, Hughes believes there is another factor in New Zealand's fixation with State of Origin beyond the brutality, pace and excitement of the series: the Graham Lowe effect. Lowe was the first and thus far only New Zealander to coach in the State of Origin, when he took the reins of Queensland in 1991. "It is a remarkable page in the history of State of Origin and I still don't think people realise how significant that was." Sir Graham Lowe was called upon to coach Queensland after leading Manly to the premiership in 1990. Photo: " When the [players] are handed their jersey tonight, they're not just given something to wear, they're also given a slice of history, they're given an opportunity to create their own history. They're given an invitation to be extraordinary." Phil Gould, game III, 2013 You do not simply apply for an Origin coaching gig. Coaches are anointed. So it came to pass, in 1991 Sir Graham Lowe was vested with the responsibility of taking the reins of the Queensland squad. Back then, Sir Graham was just 'Lowey' - the ruddy-cheeked, charismatic coach of the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles. Although he was in charge of a Sydney team, he had strong ties to Queensland having coached the Northern Suburbs team in the Queensland club competition in the late 70s and early 80s. "One day out of the blue I got a call from one of the board members of Queensland Rugby League to see if I'd consider coaching them. I just couldn't believe what I was hearing on the phone," says Lowe. It was a move that was mired in controversy. At that time the Maroons were coached by Queensland rugby league royalty Arthur Beetson, who had captained the first Origin team back in 1980. "In typical administrative fashion, no one told Arthur he was being replaced and it was really embarrassing for me," says Lowe. "He was a great friend of mine and I certainly didn't want to do the wrong thing by him. But he was a gentleman when we spoke - he offered his congratulations to me and any support he could give, and fortunately we remained really good friends." Lowe says the reaction back in New Zealand was off the scale. As the Maroons assembled in camp ahead of game one of the 1991 series, Lowe was greeted with several dozen cartons of letters, cards and messages of support from New Zealand. "That was amazing, but I was well aware also of the responsibility that went with that. I suppose after a few days it started dawning on me exactly what I got myself into. There were some anxious moments there for a while. But it was just fantastic, something I'd never, ever change." That 1991 series, which the Maroons won 2-1, remains etched in Origin folklore. In Lowe's first game in charge, Queensland took out the opening match 6-4, before NSW pulled off a dramatic win in game II in a match that produced the iconic image of 'King' Wally Lewis squaring off against NSW enforcer Mark Geyer in the pouring rain. "There was a lot of fighting, I always said I was glad I'm not out there myself," says Lowe. "It was like an incendiary torch just waiting to go off at any time. You had a big responsibility as coach, because you know you actually incited a lot of that stuff." Queensland captain Wally Lewis confronts Mark Geyer as the players head to the sheds in game two of the 1991 State of Origin series. Photo: Screengrab / Youtube - Lowe almost didn't make it to the final game of the series, which also turned out to be Lewis' farewell to Origin football. Lowe had been hospitalised the week of game III with a life-threatening blood clot in his leg. "I carried on like a baby and threw my toys out of the cot and eventually they let me out," says Lowe. He made it to Lang Park to see his team wrap up the series with a 14-12 win. Kiwi rugby league fan Paul Pirihi says Lowe is a big reason behind his loyalty and unbridled passion for Queensland, which remains to this day. "When I started at uni in the early 90s, we would have Origin parties back then. We'd go round to one of the guys' houses and watch Origin and it was a big occasion. It was something we looked forward to, it was just great." "Everyone had their team, it was either Blues or Queensland. Definitely as a Kiwis supporter, Lowey was a big part of why I supported Queensland. It was a huge thing for us at the time." Origin nights are still a big occasion in the Pirihi household. On game nights the garage of the Pirihi whānau home in Blockhouse Bay becomes the central meeting point for their friends and family. The garage, nicknamed 'The Pit', is somewhat of a shrine to rugby league, featuring a museum-worthy collection of memorabilia. Pirihi says all are welcome in The Pit - even Blues fans. "We allow them in, but there are certain rules they have to adhere to," he jokes. "If they get ahead by plenty, then it gets a bit uncomfortable." Principal of Rosebank School, Paul Pirihi, is a passionate Queensland supporter. Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly " Their destiny is not so much in their own hands, but their destiny could be decided by what's in their own hearts." - Phil Gould, game III, 2013 The State of Origin today is very different from the product of yesteryear. The series has changed over the past decade as rugby league leans even further into sports science and professional preparation, and away from on-field violence and alcohol-fuelled bonding sessions. The off-field feuds and pantomime villains on which the Origin rivalry forged has been replaced by the more unmarketable concept of a deep mutual respect between the players. Ahead of Game I this year, NSW captain Isaah Yeo was asked by a TV reporter if he could give an insight "into how much you dislike Queensland", noting, "we haven't really felt the hate" in the lead-up to the series. Yeo's answer was an apologetic shrug of the shoulders. "There's obviously a dislike, but you're probably asking the wrong person. I try not to create headlines. I apologise," said Yeo, who has won four NRL premierships with the Penrith Panthers. The shift in sensibilities has led some to conclude that Origin no longer engenders the same passion in fans, but Pirihi disagrees. "I think people are into it even more so now. The staff here love it. Even the ones that aren't big league fans will tune in for State of Origin," says Pirihi, who is the principal of Rosebank School in Avondale. "When it comes to game day, you're either wearing blue or you're in Queensland gears. There's flags up, the banter is firing back and forth. I think it's part of the fun of it. "My own son, he and all his friends will watch it, so I think the next generation are into it as well." NSW wing Brian To'o celebrates after scoring a try in the Blues' 18-6 win over Queensland in game one. Photo: DARREN ENGLAND / PHOTOSPORT Lowe points out the growing influence of Pasifika players in the NRL has translated to greater representation in the State of Origin fixtures, drawing in a more diverse fan base. Changes to the eligibility rules, which allow players who represent tier two nations like Samoa and Tonga internationally to play State of Origin, has also accelerated this. Lowe says with the likes of Samoan internationals Jarome Luai, Brian To'o and Spencer Leniu occupying key positions in the NSW line-up, Samoan fans across Australia, New Zealand and the islands are increasingly embracing the Blues. "In that way, I think Origin is even more relevant now," says Lowe. "I hear what people are saying and I guess it's because there used to be a lot of fighting, a lot of violence. While that brutality is not there in the game that was there before, the game is played at a speed you can't imagine. It still has that gladiatorial element because of the intensity of it, and the toughness of it is on a whole different level. Origin players remain a special breed." While the eligibility rules currently prevent Kiwi internationals from playing Origin, Lowe is pushing for Australian league officials to reward the fandom of New Zealanders by bringing a game here. The former Kiwis coach is hoping to get together a bid to bring one of the fixtures to New Zealand. The NRL currently stage one game from each series at a neutral venue, with the next available fixture in 2027. "I think it would be a massive thing to have it here. If you announced we are going to be given a game in four or five years, you can guarantee it would be sold out this week - that's the interest there is in State of Origin here. "It feels as much part of New Zealand sporting folklore now, as it is in Australia."
Daily Mail
24-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
NRL makes a stunning call on who will perform the national anthem for State of Origin game three
The NRL has confirmed who will perform the national anthem at the Origin series decider on July 9 - and it will warm the hearts of footy fans. Erin Mortimer, the daughter of NSW Blues legend Steve Mortimer, is poised to sing Advance Australia Fair in front of 80,000-plus supporters. It will also be the 40th anniversary of her father leading NSW to the state's first-ever Origin series triumph in 1985. In iconic scenes, the champion halfback kissed the turf at the SCG at fulltime after the Blues finally got the better of Queensland. Mortimer was then chaired off the field by his jubilant teammates before lifting the interstate trophy. 'I'm very excited, humbled and honoured on a personal note but also the sense of occasion,' Erin Mortimer told News Corp. Mortimer played nine State of Origin games for NSW in his decorated career (pictured, after winning the 1985 series) 'Given what Dad is going through, I'm grateful and privileged. 'The adrenaline, nerves and anticipation before kick-off will be amazing, so I can only imagine what Dad was feeling 40 years ago before that iconic first series win in '85.' She added it will be 'bittersweet' that Mortimer - who now lives in a Sydney nursing home - won't be at Accor Stadium on the night. A vocalist, performer and songwriter, Mortimer won't be rattled by the huge occasion, having sung the anthem at Origin games in 2008 and 2013. Mortimer played nine State of Origin games for NSW between 1982 and 1985 and also won four premierships with the Bulldogs, including two as captain. In recent years, he has battled the effects of dementia. Sadly, his son Andrew revealed Mortimer probably is unaware how well his beloved Bulldogs are performing this NRL season due to his declining health. 'It's a shame because they are absolutely killing it,' he said.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
NRL world saddened over 'horrible' revelation about Bulldogs hero Steve Mortimer
NRL fans are sending well-wishes and expressing their sadness for Steve Mortimer over devastating new details in the Canterbury Bulldogs legend's sad plight. Mortimer was diagnosed with dementia in 2021 and is now in a care home. The 68-year-old played 272 games for the Bulldogs across a legendary career, winning four premierships with the club and captaining them in the 1984 and 1985 title victories. He also played 16 State of Origin games for NSW and nine Test matches for Australia. The legendary halfback led the Blues to their first Origin series victory in 1985. However the Bulldogs and Blues legend was been battling the effects of dementia for nearly a decade, and this weekend his family shone a heartbreaking new light on his condition - four years after it become public knowledge. Mortimer's beloved Bulldogs are first on the NRL ladder after 12 rounds in 2025, but son Andrew isn't sure his father is aware. "It's is a shame because they are absolutely killing it," Andrew told the . Andrew revealed his father struggles to complete full sentences, and is slowly declining. "I don't know whether dad is thinking of something but can't articulate it, or he's not thinking it, but there's not much verbally, unfortunately," he said. 'I would say he's on a slow decline. I'm sure people who see him a few months apart, or a year, would see significant change. He is seemingly calm, somewhat at peace with the situation and probably somewhat oblivious. 'I would suggest that he's probably at the stage where he's observing life around him, rather than fully participating. We know that you don't get cured from dementia. You don't improve so, for us, it's quality of life. We try to take the approach: 'what he can do', not 'what he can't do'." Mortimer was moved into a dementia ward in 2022, and his extended family visit him multiple times per week. They take him on regular outings, which often includes watching footy. The devastating new details come on the 40th anniversary of Mortimer's famous triumph in the 1985 Origin series. Fans and pundits have flooded social media with messages of support for Mortimer after learning the new details of his plight. Commentator Arthur Stanley wrote: "I worked with Steve in his role as Ambassador at Stadium Australia for many years. Never met a more decent family." One Bulldogs fan wrote: "Turvey is why I'm a Bulldog, heartened to know he has wonderful love and support." Another wrote: "Beautiful man. I had the pleasure of meeting him a couple of times. It's so sad to see this at his age. My mother in law is going though the same thing, it's a horrible disease." RELATED: Roosters flip Origin debate on its head as Shark banned for ugly act Legend's Origin call backfires as Manly flops expose grim DCE truth Another commented: "What a horrible disease. Turvey is a Bulldogs legend and is handling this like one." While another message read: "As an opposition fan I couldn't help but admire Steve Mortimer. His battles with Slippery Morris were always incredible. It's so sad to read about his dementia battle but his family are clearly wonderful and caring; it must be so tough to witness the deterioration though." Absolute legend 👏🏾 he'd even come and shake my hand and say G'day to me when I was working in the tunnel on game day cc @AndrewMortimer — Mo Ali (@Makbulldog) May 25, 2025 As an opposition fan I couldn't help but admire Steve Mortimer. His battles with Slippery Morris were always incredible. It's so sad to read about his dementia battle but his family are clearly wonderful and caring; it must be so tough to witness the deterioration though. — Martin (@hammersaint) May 24, 2025 I knew his father Ian as the leader of the Wagga Police Boys Club, played against Chris Mortimer as kids, and then worked with Steve in his role as Ambassador at Stadium Australia for many years. Never met a more decent family. — Arthur Stanley (@Art_Stanley_) May 25, 2025 What a horrible disease. Turvey is a Bulldogs legend and is handling this like one 🙏🏻❤️ — Alice (@Aliceh_1936) May 24, 2025
Daily Mail
25-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
NRL legend's son opens up about his dad's harrowing battle with dementia
The son of rugby league legend Steve Mortimer has opened up about his dad's ongoing battle with dementia, revealing the footy great now struggles to complete a full sentence. Mortimer, 68, was diagnosed with the brain disease at the age of 60 having taken countless knocks during his illustrious playing career. He now lives in a nursing home to receive the full-time care he needs. Affectionately nicknamed 'Turvey, Mortimer's condition has progressively impacted his memory and everyday life to the point where he struggles to remember his brilliant football career. His family visit him several times a week, with the beloved husband, father and grandfather now living in a childlike state. 'It's hard to know exactly what dad is thinking,' son Andrew told News Corp while on an outing with his dad. 'But we go through it, don't we, dad? I don't know whether dad is thinking of something but can't articulate it or he's not thinking it but there's not much verbally, unfortunately. 'I would say he's on a slow decline. I'm sure people who see him a few months apart, or a year, would see significant change. He is seemingly calm, somewhat at peace with the situation and probably somewhat oblivious. 'My reading of (dad's cognitive condition) is that he's taking in part in what's happening around him but processing that, and then articulating or engaging in a conversation, is close to impossible. 'I would suggest that he's probably at the stage where he's observing life around him, rather than fully participating. We know that you don't get cured from dementia. You don't improve so, for us, it's quality of life. We try to take the approach: 'what he can do', not 'what he can't do'. 'His body language is more or less the same as at any point in his life, as in the warm approach dad always had with everyone. He has never been a man of status. He has always been reasonable, fair and available to anyone and everyone.' When asked if Steve can complete a full sentence, Andrew replied: 'Unlikely'. Mortimer, who won three premierships with the Bulldogs in the 1980s and led the NSW Blues to their first ever State of Origin series win against Queensland in 1985, is sadly probably not aware of the success Canterbury are having this year. 'I don't think so,' Andrew revealed. 'Which is a shame because they are absolutely killing it. 'But we watch the games, either at his home or if we're out-and-about, we will grab a beer or coffee and watch the game, usually at one of the local bowling clubs in and around Revesby, or a cafe. But, as time goes on, not so much. It is what it is.' In 2023, Mortimer's wife, Karen, and their kids Andrew, Matt and Erin, shared when they begun to question whether something was wrong with him. 'He was often misplacing things like his keys, wallet, and phone,' Erin said. 'It was his struggle to find easy words like car, remote, and TV. He'd often get frustrated when he couldn't find the word, and be hard on himself. 'His paranoia and constant asking where mum was and then forgetting only a short while later to then ask again, was telling.' Andrew was running a small business with his father, but noticed he was writing longwinded emails and the incoherence of those messages raised alarm bells. Matt noticed changes in his dad that seemed uncharacteristic for him. 'I'm like: you're ageing really quickly, something's off,' he said. For Karen, a trip to London in 2019 was when she noticed her husband was in trouble. The couple had visited the city many times before but when going to fetch a coffee, he took an hour and a half to return. Mortimer told his wife: 'I got lost'. During Covid lockdown, Erin said: 'It was a horrible time for everyone but around this time we watched him spiral even more. 'They were complete mood swings which would come out of nowhere, and his attitude towards mum, and Andrew would worsen. 'It was very hard to watch on occasions. We learnt how to work with them, and not against them, sometimes with the assistance of dad being given medication.'
