TV LEGEND Alastair Stewart has revealed he can no longer tie his shoelaces in heartbreaking news of his dementia diagnosis.
Britain’s longest-serving newsreader, he will retire in 2023 after a 50-year career in television.
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Alastair Stewart gave the heartbreaking news of his dementia diagnosis Credit: Alamy
Now he has discovered how dementia prevents him from tying his own shoelaces.
The veteran broadcaster said: “I covered the Gulf War and hosted the first televised debate of the leaders, but now I can’t tie my own shoelaces or choose my own shirt.”
Alastair holds the title of longest-serving male newsreader on British television, having held the job for 44 years in local and national news.
He started at ITV’s Southern Television in Southampton in 1976 and later joined ITV’s ITN in 1980.
He left the company in 2020 and joined GB News the following year.
The 72-year-old finally retired from a 50-year TV career in 2023.
Shortly thereafter, he announced that he had been diagnosed with vascular dementia.
He told The Telegraph: “There’s no point in feeling smug about it.
“I’m not going to condemn myself to a horrible life in the short term.”
While drugs are already available to slow conditions such as Alzheimer’s after diagnosis, there is nothing for vascular dementia.
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Vascular dementia is caused by reduced blood flow to the brain, which damages and eventually kills brain cells.
This can happen after a large stroke or multiple small strokes, according to the Stroke Association.
His career highlights include covering the fall of the Berlin Wall, the First Gulf War and royal events ranging from the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana at the time to the funeral of the late Queen.
He also covered the coronation of King Charles for GB News.
Is it aging or dementia?
Dementia – the most common form of which is Alzheimer’s disease – comes on slowly over time.
As the disease progresses, symptoms may become more severe.
But at first, symptoms may be subtle or may be mistaken for normal memory problems associated with aging.
The US National Institute on Aging provides some examples of what is considered normal forgetfulness in old age and dementia.
You can refer to these above.
For example, it is normal for an elderly person to forget a word to use from time to time, but difficulty in carrying on a conversation would be more indicative of dementia.
Katie Puckering, head of Alzheimer’s Research UK’s Information Services team, previously told The Sun: “As humans quite often we put our car keys in unusual places and it takes us longer to find them.
“As you get older, you need more time to remember, or you really have to think; What was I doing? Where did I stop? What distracted me? Did I have to let the dog out? And then you find the keys by the back door.
“That information retrieval process is just a little slower in people as they get older.
“In dementia, someone may not be able to remember that information and what they were doing when they entered the house.
“It could also happen that they could put him somewhere where he really doesn’t belong. For example, instead of putting the milk back in the fridge, they put the kettle in the fridge.”
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Alastair with his wife Sally Credit: Instagram
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