Tony Christie, 79, is well-known for his legendary tunes, including (Is This The Way To) Amarillo – but the star has now had to come to terms with the tragic possibility that the time will come when he can never tour again. In a new interview, he has addressed the heartbreaking moment he was first diagnosed with dementia.
Tony’s family became concerned when they noticed that his usually razor sharp memory was failing him.
“I would be the one people would ask ‘Who did this, who recorded that?’ – I knew everything,” he explained, before admitting that things are now very different.
“I was suddenly thinking: ‘I used to know this, I used to know that’ [and] Sue had to remind me of the name of someone I had known for 60-odd years,” the singer lamented.
He also lost his ability to indulge in one of his favourite hobbies – doing cryptic crosswords.
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Concern around him about how much his mental ability had deteriorated led to a visit to the doctor, where it was revealed that he had a small build-up of plaque on the brain.
Sadly, the legendary performer didn’t initially respond as well to medication as had been hoped – and side effects included debilitating fatigue.
However, he has since had a second course of medication prescribed to him, which are working much more effectively.
His only concern is that the time may come when he no longer recognises his wife’s name or may no longer be able to recite the words to his much-loved songs.
“I was a little bit down but I thought, ‘I can still work, it’s not affecting my singing, my voice, my show’,” he continued to the Mirror.
He added: “As long as I can get on that stage and do what I was born to do.”
Meanwhile, he affectionately joked that there’s no need for him to remember the words to Amarillo as devotees in the audience are always happy to shout them out for him.
He has also said that he has found solace by seeking the support of “angels” each time he prepares to go on stage.
Before he appears for the performance, he spends ten minutes channelling the invisible spirits and asking them to “help me through the show”.
His flair for singing goes back decades and isn’t something he’s likely to abandon any time soon.
From balancing precariously atop a chair at age five to sing out his favourite hits all the way up to the present day, he has always had passion for music.
Meanwhile, with the love of his wife of 55 years, Sue, he feels he’s sure to stay buoyant.
