Jon Snow's wife, Dr Precious Lunga, has spoken candidly about the broadcaster's Alzheimer's diagnosis, revealing that the stigma surrounding the disease made her feel 'angry'. The 51-year-old epidemiologist and entrepreneur made the admission in a new Channel 4 documentary, Jon Snow: A Last Big Story, which aired on Saturday evening (June 20).
Diagnosis and Reaction
Snow, 78, who anchored Channel 4 News from 1989 to 2021, disclosed his Alzheimer's diagnosis in 2023. In the documentary, cameras followed him to a medical appointment where he and Precious were told his condition had been gradually deteriorating. Precious responded by sharing her frustration at how people reacted to the diagnosis.
'When we received a diagnosis, people were writing Jon off, and that's when I realised how stigmatised Alzheimer's is, and it made me so angry actually,' Precious explained. 'This is a progressive disease, but you can have Alzheimer's and still will be a valuable member of society to contribute, if your loved ones are there to help you navigate it.'
Jon Snow's Reflections
Reflecting on his own journey, Snow said: 'At the beginning I wanted to hide it, there's so much prejudice. Any sort of hint of mental decay, you're sort of dead.' He added: 'There are moments when it pops up, but it's not an all-day, every-day condition, and that's what I cling onto.'
Snow also expressed a desire to keep learning: 'I've witnessed a great deal, I hope I've learned something – but I've still got a huge amount to learn. We all have. There's still more to do.'
Personal Background
Dr Precious Lunga, originally from Zimbabwe, left her home country at 17 to study in the UK. She graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 1998 with a degree in neuroscience and completed a PhD in neuroscience at the University of Cambridge in 2003. The couple met in 2001 on the Caribbean island of Mustique and married in 2010. They welcomed a child via surrogacy in 2021, and Snow has two children from a previous marriage.
Looking ahead, Precious courageously stated: 'So, I want to give him as good a life as I can.' The documentary, produced in association with the Alzheimer's Society, is streaming now on Channel4.com.
