Coronation Street and EastEnders star Timothy West passed away at the age of 90 on November 12, leaving behind his wife Prunella Scales, who was diagnosed with vascular dementia in 2014, and a loving family.
Their son, Samuel West, has been reflecting on his father's impact, both personally and professionally.
Sharing memories of traveling with his parents, Samuel spoke about how Timothy greatly contributed to caring for Prunella, who recently enjoyed a cruise despite her condition. Recalling his father's wisdom, Samuel said: "We worked together 13 times, but I probably learnt more from Da about life than about acting.
He taught me that enthusiasm was cool. He taught me that touring this country, professionally or otherwise, is beautiful and we should all do more of it. And he taught me to lean in and love life in all its detail," adding,"He used to say: 'Always do as much research as you can, because even if only ten per cent of it is useful, the more you do, the bigger the 10 per cent is.'"
Through their joint adventures, Timothy instilled in his children a passion for travel and an appreciation for life's intricate details. Samuel revealed that, although his mother might not always remember her destinations, she relishes the journey itself, reports the Mirror.
"If there's one thing that sums [my dad] up, I think it's Great Canal Journeys, which made such a difference to the latter part of his and my mum's life," he said, reflecting on the family pastime. "When I'm on the canals, as the inheritor of his face and his eyes that disappear when we smile, I'm always asked by passing boaters to send their best to him and Pru."
"He maintained that GCJ was about industrial architecture. We knew it was really a love story, tested by my mum's dementia and seasoned with all the attendant scrapes and narrows and minor irritations of 61 years' marriage, but held together by great cables of respect, companionship and love."
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Following Timothy's passing, Alzheimer's advocate Angela Rippon commented on his devotion to his wife post-diagnosis.
"I'm so saddened by that news because I think to everyone who knew them, it's unexpected. And I think what the wonderful thing was about their relationship was that Tim was Pru's carer and he grew into the world of dementia with her," she expressed.
"He progressed in his knowledge of dementia as she progressed in the condition. And that's why I think the programmes that they did together, the ones particularly on their barges, were wonderful. Because what Timothy knew you had to do with someone with dementia is not treat them differently...I actually had a journalist once say to me, wasn't I embarrassed to be talking about the fact my mum had dementia? Tim was never embarrassed and nor was Pru about the fact that they were living with dementia. They just went on in ensuring that Pru was able to live well with her condition."
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