Fiona Phillips’ husband shares a new photo alongside a heartbreaking update on her Alzheimer’s battle — including one detail that hits readers straight in the heart

The husband of former GMTV presenter Fiona Phillips has delivered a deeply emotional update on her condition, revealing the devastating impact Alzheimer’s disease has had on their daily lives.

Fiona, who was diagnosed with young-onset Alzheimer’s in 2022 at the age of 61, has been battling the illness largely out of the spotlight. Now, her husband Martin Frizell has spoken candidly during an appearance on Lorraine, sharing both heartbreak and quiet resilience

“She doesn’t remember Christmas now, she doesn’t remember New Year,” Martin admitted. Yet he was quick to stress that his wife is far from gone. “I don’t want to give the impression she’s some sort of basket case. She’s very much with us.”

Alongside his words, Martin shared a recent photo of Fiona at home — a tender snapshot showing her enjoying a piece of chocolate. In his typically gentle humour, he joked she would “probably hate it because she thinks her hair colour should be a bit better,” a reminder that traces of Fiona’s personality still shine through.

But the reality of their day-to-day life has grown increasingly challenging. Martin revealed that even simple outings have become overwhelming. “There’s no way I could drive or we could take public transport as Fiona now rarely understands where she is going or why, constantly asking what is happening, probably four or five times a minute on loop for the entire journey.”

He described one taxi ride that nearly broke him. “Honestly, I got close to telling the taxi driver to turn around and take us home – Fiona’s only safe place – as the stress was unbearable. But of course that self-pity pales into insignificance compared to what Fiona was going through.”

Despite dedicating himself to Fiona’s care, Martin confessed he has tried to reclaim small parts of his own life. He has returned to broadcasting and podcasting and is planning to tour with his crime podcast in April — his first trip away for more than three days in two years. Still, the guilt lingers. “I feel guilty being here and not with her,” he admitted.

Fiona’s long career — from presenting GMTV between 1993 and 2008 to fronting documentaries and writing columns — has now taken on new meaning through the book documenting her diagnosis. What began as Martin intending to write “a few paragraphs” turned into 24,000 words fuelled by love and anger.

“I started off writing about what a great woman she is and just how horrible it is and dreadfully unlucky that she is the latest in the long line of her family to get it,” he explained. “Then I just got very angry as to what little support there is. As a family, we just kind of get through it and at some point we will need more support, but there’s just nothing really.”Family games

In the book, Fiona herself heartbreakingly described what it feels like to lose her memories. “Everywhere I look there are memories. I know they are there. Yet so many of them feel out of reach now,” she wrote. “It’s like I reach out to touch them but then just as I am about to grasp it, the memory skips away from me. And I can’t catch up with it. Like trying to chase a £5 note on a gusty day.”

It is a metaphor that captures the quiet cruelty of the disease — and the strength of a couple determined to face it together.