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Privacy Notice Renowned broadcaster John Stapleton, veteran presenter of iconic shows like Newsnight, Panorama, and GMTV’s News Hour, has opened up about his Parkinson’s diagnosis in a documentary with his son, BBC’s Nick Stapleton. In a video clip on BBC One’s Morning Live, the star says he is “pragmatic” about the prospect of it getting worse. John said: “Speaking is how I’ve earned my living for the best part of 50 years, and it’s very frustrating sometimes, particularly if people are constantly saying to you, sorry, what did you say?” And you have to repeat yourself time and time and time again. “I’m fairly pragmatic about the prospect of this getting worse. I try to remain positive because what’s the point of not being (positive).” His son, Nick, said that, while the diagnosis has been “really upsetting”, it did not come as a surprise because his grandmother also had the degenerative condition.
John Stapleton has revealed he has Parkinson’s
(Image: No credit)
Parkinson’s disease is a condition in which parts of the brain become progressively damaged over many years, with symptoms including tremors and slow movement, according to the NHS website. A study last year showed that a staggering 74 percent of people struggle with broaching the topic of care with elder family members. Nick dives deep into tackling the tough dialogues surrounding a family member’s diagnosis in the film, while also dealing with the foreseen hurdles. Discussing similarities with his mother, who had Parkinson’s too, John speaks on facing comparable issues with movement and Nick talked to his father about the future and how he could best support him. Nick shared: “It’s early days for us, and thankfully Dad is still fairly independent, but nonetheless I want to start these conversations now to get some potentially difficult topics out in the open and make it easier for later on.”
John is a veteran presenter
(Image: GMTV)
John opened up about his mother’s diagnosis, highlighting one of her main struggles was her “inability to do things like open a can of beans or peel a potato”. “I am having the same sort of problem right now,” he confessed. After the chat with his son and considering the future, John added: “The fact that I’ve had an early diagnosis, the fact that I’ve seen what happened to my mother firsthand is all a big bonus in many ways, because it enables me to look at it practically, realistically and plan sensibly for the future.”
Broadcaster John Stapleton has revealed his diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease
(Image: BBC)
Georgina Jones, a senior care advisor at Parkinson’s UK, gave Nick advice on how to sensitively discuss the possibility of future care with his dad. She clarified: “It’s trying to talk about what support someone might need rather than what care they might need, starting with what they would like and what they’re struggling with.” “There’s all kinds of equipment that people might need in their home. And that kind of small steps will then build up to something more major, decisions about if someone needed to sell their home, they needed to move, etc.” The full film is available to watch on BBC iPlayer. Morning Live airs weekdays at 9.30am on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.Story SavedYou can find this story in My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.Follow OK! MagazineFacebookTwitterCommentMore OnGood Morning BritainDocumentaryBBC
