Timothyw West on his wife Prunella's Altzheimers

[annie]

She admitted last year that she struggled with her day-to-day memory and could not remember whether she had made herself a coffee.

Yesterday it emerged actress Prunella Scales has been diagnosed with ‘mild Alzheimer’s’.

And the 81-year-old star, who is best-known for playing bolshie wife Sybil in Fawlty Towers, remained typically defiant over her diagnosis declaring it would not stop her from acting and that she hoped to die on stage ‘playing a reasonably good part’ during her ‘eighth curtain call’.

Filming a series for More 4 documentaries with actor husband Timothy West, in which the couple embark on canal boat trips together, the pair opened up about how their lives have changed following Miss Scales’ diagnosis.

Actor Mr West, 79, told how his beloved wife struggles to ‘remember things’ but admitted their canal boat lifestyle therefore allowed her ‘enjoy things as they happen’.

Living life day-by-day with her doting husband, Miss Scales said in an interview with the Radio Times: ‘I always say I want to die on the eighth curtain call. Eight will mean the show’s been rather a success. I just hope I’m somewhere near the middle and have been reasonably good in the part.’

Speaking about their programme ‘Grand Canal Journeys’ which will see the couple tour four of Britain’s favourite canal journeys, Mr West admitted life on the boat helped cope him cope with his wife’s difficulties.

Describing her condition as ‘a sort of mild Alzheimer’s’ in an interview with the Radio Times Mr West, said: ‘She can’t remember things very well, but you don’t have to remember things on the canal.

‘You can just enjoy things as they happen - so it’s perfect for her.’

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, and currently there is no cure for the disease which worsens as it progresses.

Although Alzheimer’s disease develops differently for every individual, there are many common symptoms which include short term memory loss, confusion, irritability, mood swings, trouble with language and long term memory loss.


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