THE matriarch of Britain’s biggest brood – Sue Radford – has been brutally criticised over a ”distasteful” episode which ”falsely lead viewers to believe she has dementia at 49”.
Mum-of-22 revealed the earth-shattering diagnosis on 22 Kids and Counting last night, January 26th.
The matriarch of the bumper brood had become quiet and distant, causing major concern[/caption]
Dad Noel, 54, found a leaflet in the family’s chaos before confronting his wife about it[/caption]
The latter part of the episode then revealed it wasn’t the matriarch whose life had been turned upside down[/caption]
Sue, from Morecambe, Lancashire, was seen behaving unusually quiet after she learned that one of her life-long friends had been diagnosed with the illness.
The first part of the episode showed the 49-year-old and her husband, Noel, 54, becoming more distant as the typically outgoing mum-of-22 became more withdrawn.
The pie whizz, naturally, was seen growing increasingly worried about his wife, whom he got married to in 1992.
After Noel accidentally stumbled across a leaflet for dementia in the family vehicle he feared the worst – but the latter part of the episode then revealed it wasn’t the matriarch whose life had been turned upside down.
Channel 5 viewers slammed the episode as ”distasteful” that ”set up” fans of the mega brood to believe Sue Radford had a life-changing illness.
During the episode, Noel said: ‘I’m a bit worried about Sue, she’s been really quiet today which isn’t like her. She’s always like chatty, bubbly. Doesn’t seem the usual Sue. So I’m a little bit like ‘What’s going on?’
Desperate to find out the source of her concern, the 54-year-old arranged to go for a coffee date with Sue but she failed to make an appearance.
Noel then enlisted the help of the couple’s daughter, Sophie, 31, who took Sue out for a trip to a beauty clinic in the hopes to cheer her mum up.
Meanwhile, the pie master discovered a worrying leaflet about dementia in the family’s van.
Desperate to discover the source of his wife’s low mood, Noel asked her without any hesitation: ”What’s been going on?”
Sue then apologised, before explaining what’s been bothering her.
”I am sorry, it’s been awful. But now she’s told her family, I can tell you, so… she’s got early onset dementia,” she confessed.
She then revealed the news that one of long-term friends had recently been diagnosed with the illness.
The condition which causes people to lose their memory and cognitive function, is currently the leading cause of death in the UK.
More than 70,800 people in the country are thought to have early onset dementia, and there’s currently no cure.
Symptoms can start as early as 30 – although it’s typically diagnosed much later, between the ages of 50 to 64, according to Dementia UK.
While gutted to discover the news, the husband was relieved that it it wasn’t Sue who had been diagnosed – after worrying the leaflet had been for her.
Common early symptoms of dementia
Different types of dementia can affect people differently, and everyone will experience symptoms in their own way.
However, there are some common early symptoms that may appear some time before a diagnosis of dementia. According to the NHS, these include:
- memory loss
- difficulty concentrating
- finding it hard to carry out familiar daily tasks, such as getting confused over the correct change when shopping
- struggling to follow a conversation or find the right word
- being confused about time and place
- mood changes.
Sue, who was still in total disbelief, said that their friend was her age.
”It’s really upset me, especially when she’s got youngish children as well. You don’t expect that, do you?
”You kind of think, don’t you, that it’s something you get when you’re maybe 70, 80 – it’s not something you think of in your late 40s, is it?
”It’s knocked me for six. I feel like ‘Wow, that could happen to anybody, couldn’t it?”
”It just shows you how fragile life is,” Noel reminded.
After visiting the friend, who Sue has known for years, the mother-of-22 said she was ”dealing with it all okay”.
”She’s very bubbly, a big personality and she’s not the sort of person who will let things get to her.
”But you can tell that she’s worried about it.
”If you couldn’t remember, you know, like Heidi, Bonnie, Archie, whoever’s names, it’d just be heart-breaking,” emotional Sue said.
”It’s a bit of a reality check to see ‘You know what, it can happen to anybody, can’t it?’
”You don’t know what’s around the corner.
‘Distasteful’ episode
But viewers were quick to slam the episode, dubbing it ”staged” and ”distasteful”.
One wrote: ”What a load of scripted nonsense, how can Sue just walk out and leave the children and Noel doesn’t seem to be at work.”
A second said: ”Distasteful ….wanting to make people think Sue had dementia. Scripts need looking into.”
”Wow the show is really setting this up as though Sue has dementia. She doesn’t. A family friend has early onset dementia,” a third lamented.
Another wrote: ”If it’s not all scripted then I think she’s out of order not just telling him she’s fine and it’s someone else. Poor guy must’ve been so worried! Have gone off her!”
But not everyone was so bothered by the show. One fan wrote: ”Stop with the negative comments you don’t like the programme don’t watch it simple.”
