This Morning viewers found themselves being taken aback by Tony Christie as he appeared on the show. The singer joined hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield live on the famous sofa on Tuesday (April 25) and fans were quick to flock to social media to admit their 'soft spot' for the star.
Tony gave up his birthday to join the pair for a chat on the ITV daytime show in which he opened up about his dementia diagnosis. The '(Is This The Way To) Amarillo' singer shared how he went for a check-up at the doctor's after he began struggling with one of his hobbies. "One of my big things, for donkey's years, 50 years [has been] crosswords," he shared.
"Cryptic crosswords, that was my big hobby. Then suddenly I'm getting problems with doing it and I said to my wife 'What's wrong are they making it more difficult for me or is it me?' so she said 'Let's go and see a specialist'.
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"This lady, the specialist, did an x-ray and everything and she said 'You've got the early stages of dementia' and I said I'm not bothered about it, not affecting me apart from the crosswords."
Tony also shared how when he was first diagnosed he didn't want to tell anybody over fears of the stigma surrounding it. However, it was his wife Sue, who was in the dressing room backstage, who encouraged him to speak out about his diagnosis, leaving people across the nation inspired by his story.
Despite his diagnosis, Tony is still working and told Holly and Phillip that he was working on releasing two albums, and embarking on another tour to celebrate his 80th birthday, which was today (Tuesday, April 25). And This Morning viewers couldn't believe his age.
@Margaretannkea1 tweeted: "How amazing does Tony Christie look, happy birthday #ThisMorning." @newcastlenut posted: "#ThisMorning tell you what Tony Christie looks f*****g good for 80 yo." @Itt39354118 shared: "80 years old looks good #thismorning." @Crazier added: "#thismorning I’ll admit it now, I have a soft spot for Tony Christie!"
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