Fiona Phillips split from husband after Alzheimer signs caused marriage 'strain'
To the outside world, Fiona Phillips' marriage was nothing short of perfect. But now, the former breakfast TV presenter has revealed that her relationship was anything but a happy one as Alzheimer's disease was starting to take its toll on her and her family - unknowingly.
The relationship between Fiona, 64 and her husband - former This Morning producer Martin Frizell - had broken down beyond repair as she recalled the moment he announced he was moving out of their family home.
In a first person piece for the Mail On Sunday, the TV star, who was one of the main presenters of GMTV, opened up on the fact she was not aware she had developed the disease which had taken both her parents.
In the run up to their secret separation, Fiona explained that she was in denial over the fact she was experiencing the initial symptoms of the disease and put it down to the menopause instead.
Their marriage became more and more fractured as Martin felt Fiona was becoming increasingly distant from him and their children and their arguments were becoming far too regular.
Fiona explained: "Was I worried that there might be something sinister lurking beneath the surface? That Alzheimer's could one day be coming for me too? "
She added: "On one level I did think I would get the disease, but there was also another part of me that was in a strange sort of denial about it all. This illness has devastated so much of my life already, surely it's not going to come for me too?' I'd tell friends."
Fiona went onto reveal that she's sure that the disease was "at least partly responsible" for her marriage breaking down but that neither she nor Martin could see that. She became "more and more disconnected" from her family, with Martin accusing her of zoning out of their marriage.
She said: "But, if I'm honest, I think he was right. I just didn't seem to have the energy for any of it any more. I didn't realise quite how seriously Martin felt about it all until one evening he announced he was moving out."
In that moment, Fiona did not believe that her marriage was completely over, in fact she said that she felt he was simply "trying to shock me into behaving differently".
They had separated for three weeks before they started to exchange text messages between each other and then arranged to meet at a hotel in Hampshire, in a desperate bid to save their marriage.
They reconciled their differences but Fiona recalled that she was still suffering with the same symptoms. In 2023, at the age of 62, Fiona revealed that she had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
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SHE had the dream job, a famous husband and two gorgeous sons – but behind closed doors, TV favourite Fiona Phillips was secretly crumbling. Best known for fronting GMTV for over a decade, the broadcaster was a breakfast telly icon with a glittering career and a huge smile. 6 6 6 But while she looked every inch the success story, her personal life was marred by tragedy and a devastating diagnosis that she did not see coming. Fiona, 64, revealed she was battling Alzheimer's in 2023 — the same cruel disease that claimed both her parents. The heartbreaking news made headlines, but the truth behind her journey is even more raw and emotional. In her new memoir, Remember When: My Life with Alzheimer's, Fiona lifts the lid on her private pain and the devastating toll it took on her marriage to former editor of ITV's This Morning, Martin Frizell, 65. Martin also shares his side of the story in the book, which they wrote together. 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'Just like there are no funny or inspiring TikTok videos or fashion shoots with smiling, healthy, in-remission survivors.' He goes on: 'After someone is diagnosed with Alzheimer's, they are pretty much left to their own devices. 'There is nothing more that can be done and you are left to cope alone.' Back in January 1997, Fiona felt like the 'luckiest woman alive' when she landed the job of a lifetime as lead presenter on GMTV. But behind the scenes, it was pressure-cooker stuff — 4am starts, non-stop stress and a producer 'barking' in her earpiece. At home, life was just as intense. With two young sons, Nathanial and Mackenzie, plus a weekly newspaper column, radio show and endless TV gigs, she was 'running on empty'. Weekends were spent away in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, caring for her mum Amy, who was slowly slipping away due to Alzheimer's and died in 2006. Soon after losing his wife, her dad Phil was diagnosed with the same illness. Fiona previously said the drive from London to Wales every other weekend with the two boys strapped in the backseat 'nearly cracked me up'. She left GMTV in December 2008 — reportedly midway through a £1.5million contract, which cost her £500,000 — to spend more time with her family. Fiona admitted back then that the decision was the 'hardest I have ever had to make — like jumping off a cliff and hoping someone will save me halfway down',. But she revealed she had 'finally discovered that I can't have it all' and felt like she was 'dropping balls' all over the place. While Fiona finally had more time to dedicate to Martin and the boys, her career never quite recovered. She took on bits and pieces of work — including a stint on Strictly Come Dancing in 2005 and presenting a Channel 4 documentary titled Mum, Dad, Alzheimer's and Me in 2009. But Fiona admitted she never felt 'completely right' and became 'disconnected' from her family. Meanwhile, she was starting to struggle with mood swings, erratic behaviour and an inability to complete everyday tasks, such as going to the bank. 6 6 Things came to a head with Martin in 2021 and he moved out of the family home, accusing her of 'zoning out' of their marriage. After three weeks apart, the couple met at a hotel and agreed they wanted to stay together — but things had to change. Fiona had initially suspected the exhaustion, anxiety and brain fog she had been battling was a side effect of Long Covid. She contracted the virus in 2020. But by then, Fiona was wondering if her symptoms were down to menopause. Martin urged her to talk to telly doctor Dr Louise Newson, who specialised in menopause and recommended a course of hormone replacement therapy (HRT). But after several months of seeing little change, Dr Newson recommended she was properly assessed. In 2022, a consultant broke the heartbreaking news to the couple that Fiona, then 61, had early onset Alzheimer's. It's something I might have thought I'd get at 80…but I was still only 61. My poor mum was crippled with it, then my dad. It keeps coming back for us. Fiona Fiona had secretly feared that one day it would come for her, too, after it 'decimated' her family. But the news still came as a shock. Writing in her book, she recalls: 'Neither of us said a word. 'We sat rigid, locked in suspended animation between everything our lives had been before this moment and everything they would become beyond it.' She previously told the Mirror: 'It's something I might have thought I'd get at 80 . . . but I was still only 61 years old. "My poor mum was crippled with it, then my dad, my grandparents, my uncle. It just keeps coming back for us.' Fiona and Martin kept her diagnosis quiet for a year, as she hated the idea of becoming 'an object of gossip or even pity'. 'Horrible secret' Gradually, the couple began to feel they should tell more people, so Fiona would be understood and not judged if she began behaving strangely. Realising the impact she could have by raising awareness of the disease's symptoms, the star decided to go public in July 2023. Fiona characteristically insisted she was 'getting on with it', adding of her illness: 'I'm not taking notice of it. 'I'm just doing what I normally do. 'I don't want to not work, be sitting around playing with my fingers or watching telly. 'I just like doing things.' She told the Mirror: 'All over the country, there are people of all different ages whose lives are being affected by it — it's heartbreaking. 'I just hope I can help find a cure which might make things better for others in the future . . . it's a horrible bloody secret to divulge.' While there is no cure for Alzheimer's, Fiona is currently taking drugs to slow the illness's progression. She also joined a trial programme for a drug called Miridesap at University College Hospital in London, in a bid to slow the effects of the disease. But Fiona now needs a lot of help with everyday tasks including showering, brushing her teeth and getting dressed. Martin said his wife is 'existing', unable to remember 'anything from 30 seconds ago', and she 'can't think about or imagine a future'. At times, she becomes distressed and confused, shouting at him that he isn't her husband. It is something he finds difficult, but understands that the illness has 'taken her mind'. Martin admitted the journey is an exhausting and lonely one, writing that it breaks his heart to see his 'strong, independent wife has become so vulnerable'. He adds: 'I'd like to tell you Fiona is content in the situation into which she has been forced. 'I'd like to give readers some sense that she is at peace. 'But that wouldn't be the truth. 'She isn't — she is frustrated every single day. And depressed. 'I miss her. I miss my wife.' Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer's by Fiona Phillips (Macmillan, £22), is out July 17. 6
