The harsh realities of caring for a partner with dementia are laid bare in a moving campaign launched by Alzheimer’s Society.

For many, a dementia diagnosis marks the beginning of an often-difficult transition from being in an intimate relationship, to becoming a carer – fulfilling the ultimate vow of ‘in sickness and in health’.

The campaign features an ad, narrated by actor Colin Firth, which shows how dementia can change the dynamics of a relationship. Mary McCartney, Paul McCartney’s daughter, has taken photographs of couples affected by dementia.

Football legend Denis Law announced he hasin  mixed dementia August 2021. He said: “When you get married, you never imagine that decades after making those vows of ‘in sickness and in health’ that you will end up testing them to the limits with dementia. That you would come to rely so heavily on your partner keeping their vow to really look after you.

“We tackle everything together. But living with dementia means Diana has to take responsibility a bit more now although we still come as a team of course!"

There are 900,000 people living with the condition in the UK, a figure that’s expected to rise to 1.6 million by 2040.