Barbara Windsor's Alzheimer's getting worse, says husband as he prepares for London Marathon
The husband of EastEnders star Dame Barbara Windsor says her condition has deteriorated in recent weeks.
Scott Mitchell is training to run the London Marathon for a dementia charity, as Dame Barbara has Alzheimer's.
He and a number of Dame Barbara's former EastEnders co-stars are running the event in April in a team called Barbara's Revolutionaries for the Dementia Revolution, a year-long campaign formed by dementia charities Alzheimer's Society and Alzheimer's Research UK.
Actors including Jake Wood, Adam Woodyatt and Natalie Cassidy are among those taking part in the London Marathon to raise money for the Dementia Revolution.
"In truth, I'd say there's been a change," Mitchell told ITV News. "I'd say certainly over the last couple of weeks, especially, her confusion is quite a bit of the time now.
"I've spent a lot of time in the evenings over the last couple of weeks explaining where they are and that's when we're sitting in our lounge and she finds it very hard to recognise the house; she tends to think it's Stoke Newington, which is her childhood home and we have to go through that the entire time."
When asked how Dame Barbara reacted to the news of co-stars running, Mitchel said: "She loved it. She absolutely loved it. We showed her a film and her face absolutely lit up and 'it's lucky I like them all as well'.
"She's very moved by it to think that people are supporting in this way.
Dame Barbara, 81, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2014, although her battle with the condition was only made public last year by Mr Mitchell.