Former This Morning editor Martin Frizell (right) has claimed that the Phillip Schofield scandal was a welcome break from home as wife Fiona Phillips Alzheimer’s progressed

Martin Frizell, the former editor of ITV’s This Morning, has made a startling confession: the infamous Phillip Schofield scandal actually offered him emotional refuge — just as his wife, TV presenter Fiona Phillips, was slipping deeper into early-onset Alzheimer’s.

Fiona was diagnosed in 2022 at just 61 years old. Since then, Martin — her husband of over 25 years — has been her full-time caregiver. But in the new memoir Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer’s, co-written with journalist Alison Phillips, Martin opens up about the strange comfort he found at work during one of the darkest chapters of his personal life.

Fiona was just 61 when she found out that she has early-onset Alzheimer’s in 2022, and since then has been cared for by her husband Martin (pictured in 2016)

“Going into ITV every day gave me structure, a sense of normality. It wasn’t about running from Fiona — it was about surviving,” he wrote.

In her memoir Remember When: My Life With Alzheimer’s, which Martin co-wrote, he revealed that going into work at ITV in 2023 ‘took his mind of Fiona at home’

At the time, ITV was engulfed in scandal. Phillip Schofield had resigned in disgrace after admitting to lying about an affair with a much younger colleague. His co-host Holly Willoughby later quit too, after police informed her of a chilling kidnap threat. The show was reeling — but for Martin, the chaos was oddly grounding.

“I Needed the Distraction…”

“We’d just lost Phillip. Then Holly stepped down. In March 2024, we brought in Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley. There was so much to manage — and honestly, that workload helped me cope,” Martin explained.

He clarified:

“It wasn’t an escape from Fiona, but from the anxiety and helplessness of watching her decline.”

Martin served as This Morning’s editor for nearly a decade, but eventually stepped down, saying his family now had to come first.

“Live telly is 24/7, and I knew I couldn’t do both,” he said in a statement last November.

A Love Story Hit by a Cruel Twist

Martin and Fiona’s relationship began on the set of GMTV — she was a rising star presenter, and he was chief correspondent. After dating just four weeks, they eloped to Las Vegas in 1997. They went on to raise two sons, Nat and Mackenzie, and were a fixture of British morning television.

Now, life looks very different.

“She used to be the life and soul of the party,” Martin recalled. “Now… she stares into space most of the day.”

In the book, Martin writes that Fiona can no longer shower, brush her teeth, or even turn on a kettle without help. She is increasingly anxious, quiet, and fragile — her short-term memory fading faster by the day.

“I Miss Her. I Miss My Wife.”

Despite her deteriorating condition, Fiona is still aware of her illness. And that, Martin says, makes it even more painful.

“We haven’t really spoken about the diagnosis… but she knows. She knows what’s happening.”

Both of Fiona’s parents died from Alzheimer’s. Now, her two sons are helping care for her, and she continues to support dementia charities as an ambassador — even while battling the disease herself.

Martin admits to feeling isolated, invisible, and broken at times.

“There are around 70,000 people with early-onset Alzheimer’s — and there’s not a lot of help out there,” he wrote.
“As a family, we’re just left to figure it out.”

Meanwhile… Phillip Tries to Rebuild, but the Rift with Holly Remains

While Martin was coping with tragedy at home, the show he edited was falling apart in public.

Following his resignation, Phillip Schofield attempted a return to television on Channel 5’s Cast Away — a solo survival show that saw him isolated on an island near Madagascar for 10 days.

In what many saw as a direct reference to Holly’s infamous line following his exit — “Are you OK?” — Phillip said during a BBQ scene:

“If you’re OK, we’re OK… and I’m OK… are you OK?”

But behind the scenes, the rift between Phillip and Holly appeared to deepen. Holly publicly stated she felt “hurt” by Phillip’s lies. Their friendship, once one of the closest on TV, is now fractured beyond repair.

“I Just Want to Hold On to Who She Was…”

Back at home, Martin clings to the memories of the vibrant woman he married.

“I miss her. I miss the conversations, the jokes. I miss my wife.”

He’s candid about the exhaustion, the heartbreak, and the lack of support available for families like his. He fears the road ahead — but continues to fight alongside Fiona.

“Mentioning the word Alzheimer’s… it brings everything to the surface. It’s terrifying.”

And as Fiona fades, Martin hopes this book will help others understand what it means to love someone — and lose them slowly, in real time.