Fiona Phillips’ husband Martin Frizell has said that he hopes new prime minister Andy Burnham will “follow through” on his social care proposals amid the ex GMTV presenter’s Alzheimer’s struggle.
Phillips, 65, was diagnosed with early on-set Alzheimer’s disease in 2023 after experiencing symptoms of brain fog and anxiety, which she initially assumed were just side effects of the menopause.
In a new update on Instagram, Frizell spoke out about Andy Burnham’s latest promises to overhaul social care, after the prime minister said that carers should be the best paid people in society. Burnham said on Wednesday (29 July) that he would immediately begin reforming the workforce and teared up as he spoke about his father, who is receiving care for Alzheimer’s.
Sharing a new photograph of a smiling Phillips, Frizell wrote: “Fiona at breakfast today, at one point she was going to work with Andy Burnham as Health Secretary when Gordon Brown asked her to become a health minister in his government.
“If the new Prime Minister, who knows what Alzheimer’s can do from his father’s experience, follows through on making a difference to sufferers like Fiona, his dad and millions of others then he will become the most consequential politician of his generation,” he continued. “For decades no-one listened, dementia became the poor relation to cancer and yet it’s our biggest killer.
“Sadly it’s taken someone touched by dementia to take it seriously but how will we afford to treat it properly? Who knows but when your family life is altered forever by a dementia diagnosis you won’t be quibbling about one or two per cent extra you’ve contributed to provide to a proper care system.”
He urged people to “spend a day with an Alzheimer’s family” to understand how there’s “so much hope” riding on Burnham’s promises. “It cheered up our morning,” he added.
Phillips revealed in 2007 that she had been offered the role of public health minister by then-prime minister Gordon Brown after the pair spoke about the presenter becoming involved in a campaign in that area. Phillips said that she turned down the offer as she was raising two young children at the time, while a Downing Street spokesperson said that they would not comment, although the prime minister “would welcome all men and women of talent who want to contribute to public life”.
Frizell was the editor of ITV’s This Morning for 10 years until last year, having stepped away from the show to care for Phillips. His former ITV colleagues shared their well wishes in the comments, with Good Morning Britain’s Susanna Reid writing: “Love to you both x”
While regular contributors Ashley James, Lizzie Cundy and Denise Van Outen left a series of heart emojis.
Earlier this year, Frizell opened up about Phillips’ current condition, revealing that she’s slowly “slipping away” due to the degenerative memory condition.
“It’s wretched; not just for her but for the family as well,” he said in February. “She's still there, but day by day, we can see it slipping away. Just to sit there and see this person who was, as you know, the most dynamic, bubbly, and had so much pride in how she dressed and what she did, it’s just a loss of dignity.
“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 world’s most stubborn woman, and she’s still around the house.”
Frizell married Phillips in 1997 and the couple share two sons: Nathaniel, 26, and Mackenzie, 23.
