‘It’s wretched for the household – we see her slipping away every single day and shedding her dignity’ says Martin Frizell as he points ‘terrible’ Fiona Phillips Alzheimer’s replace – and divulges he is battling ‘a slip into despair’

Martin Frizell opened up about the ‘wretched’ effects of his wife Fiona Phillips’ ongoing battle with Alzheimer’s – as he took to Lorraine to call for the government to do more to find a cure for the disease. 

The former This Morning editor sat down with Lorraine Kelly on her self-titled show to issue an update on how Fiona, 65, was doing after she was diagnosed four years ago.

Journalist and broadcaster Fiona was only 61 when she was told she had developed the disease, a progressive, incurable brain disorder that causes a decline in memory, thinking and behaviour. 

Martin, 67, quit his position at ITV after 10 years in charge to be ‘around much more’ for wife Fiona in 2024 – and helped write her memoir, Remember When. 

Opening up on her worsening condition, Martin said that he had battled ‘slipping into a depression‘ as he cared for Fiona, and watched her ‘slip away’. 

He told Lorraine, sharing a new image of Fiona, taken yesterday (February 10): ‘She doesn’t remember Valentine’s Day, she doesn’t remember Christmas now, she doesn’t remember New Year’s.

‘It’s wretched… not just for her but for the family as well.

‘She’s still there, but day by day, we can see it slipping away – and just to sit there and see this person who was, as you know was the most dynamic, bubbly, and had so much pride in how she dressed and what she did – it’s just a loss of dignity…

‘People do ask, “Are you okay?” and I used to say, “It’s not me, don’t worry about me”, but I am conscious that I’ve never been a depressive person but I can slip into that.

‘My respite is work, I’ve gone back to broadcasting, and podcasting… but I still feel guilty, I feel guilty being here [away from Fiona].’ 

Martin went on to reveal the ways he could see Fiona fighting her worsening condition, praising her for being a ‘stubborn woman’. 

‘I don’t want to give the impression she’s some sort of basket case as she’s very much with us, she still is the worlds’ most stubborn woman, and she’s still around the house,’ the broadcaster continued. 

‘We play her a lot of Rod Stewart, when she was a reporter she interviewed him and they became friends, he called her Doris – and I think she’s a contender for Rochelle and Marvin Humes’ The Hit List because she can do all the tunes.’ 

Martin went on to hit out at the government for not doing more to find a cure for the disease – and hit out at Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Wes Streeting.

The former ITV editor noted that since Fiona’s book was published in July 2025, he had not noticed ‘anyone speaking’ about Alzheimer’s. 

He hit out: ‘Since I last spoke about her book, nobody has spoken about Alzheimer’s. Wes Streeting – where is he on this? There’s been nothing.

‘One of the first things Wes Streeting did when he came in was, there were targets for diagnosing Alzheimer’s – but he cancelled those. 

‘All the charities and all the experts are saying, “why have you done that?” Cancer gets sometimes as much as ten times as much funding as Alzheimer’s and Dementia.

‘[I wish she had been diagnosed with cancer] because there’s drugs [to help]. When she was first diagnosed she was put on the same [medicine] as her mum 20 years ago. 

‘There’s new American drugs but they won’t pay for it due to “cost benefit analysis”.’

It comes after Martin revealed the one thing you shouldn’t say to someone with dementia after GMB star was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.

In one of the final chapters of the book, Martin shared the biggest learning he has gleaned from his wife’s illness, and it’s advice that anyone with a loved one struggling with a degenerative brain condition can benefit from.

He wrote: ‘The experts say you are not supposed to challenge someone with Alzheimer’s when they’re saying things that are completely wrong, but it’s very difficult when you are in that moment and you are just desperately hoping you might be able to get through to them. 

‘What am I supposed to say when she says: “You’re not my husband!”?

‘Obviously it’s not nice—but I don’t feel hurt by it because I know that isn’t Fiona talking: it’s the illness that has taken her mind.’ 

Martin continued that the most important thing to do when involved in a back-and-forth with a dementia patient is not to say ‘no’.

He believes that it’s best to keep up rapport — even if it’s uncomfortable — to stay connected. 

He said: ‘The textbooks say to never argue with a dementia patient. 

‘Although, even before the illness you could never win an argument with Fiona, so we play along,’ he continued. 

The couple live with their two sons, Nathaniel, 26 and Mackenzie, 23, who also have to entertain their mother’s terrifying delusions – one of which required Martin to pretend that he has smuggled his wife away from her parents. 

He told This Morning: ‘Fiona and I leave as if I am taking her home.

‘We walk around the block as she loudly proclaims, “I’ll never forgive you for tricking me,” and passers-by stare; then we are back home again, where she goes in and greets Mackenzie as if she hasn’t seen him for days.’

Despite seeing the diagnosis coming as his wife became increasingly withdrawn and anxious, Martin said when it finally came it was ‘awful’. 

‘You realise that there are around 70,000 people who have early-onset Alzheimer’s and there is not a lot of help out there,’ he added. 

‘As a family we are just kind of left to get through it and at some point we will need more support but there’s just nothing really. 

‘You become kind of invisible’, he told the Telegraph in a recent interview. 

‘If you mention the word Alzheimer’s or dementia, it brings it to the front and it’s upsetting because she knows the way it’s going,’ he also wrote in the book.

Lorraine airs weekdays from 9am on ITV1 and ITVX