Eamonn Holmes and Isabel Webster pay sweet tribute to co-star Alastair Stewart amid dementia battle

"Christopher, let's talk about Alastair Stewart," Eamonn began as Biggins weighed in: "Yes, so sad. I mean, I know Alastair really well.

"The reason I know him is because in the '80s, I did a TV series for TVS called Safari for Children.

"And Sally, his wife, worked on it so that's how I first met him then and we've been friends ever since.

"So when I came to work here like I'm doing now, it was lovely to see him again and he was great!

"Marvellous journalist," Biggins added as he praised the 71-year-old. "Really good fun and a twinkle in his eye and then to hear this is devastating."

"It's an awful disease," Eamonn echoed before Biggins then asked him about historic perceptions of dementia and if it went by a different name when they were children.

Eamonn replied: "Yes, it was called hardening of the arteries. I remember my grandmother and people would say, 'What's wrong with her?' And they would say, 'Oh, she's got hardening of the arteries.'

"That's the way they termed it, no one used the word dementia," Eamonn continued before Isabel weighed in.

Isabel encouraged viewers to rewatch Alastair's interview with Camilla while paying tribute to the "great presence" he is in the studio.

"Don't read it in the (newspapers), go to our GB News website, watch the interview again with Camilla Tominey," Isabel said.

"(It takes) two clicks, and it was a really powerful interview. Tearful, emotive - and he's just got such a wonderful voice, a bit like you Biggins.

"(He) really projects and he's got such a great presence about him.

"He's given up smoking, he's doing everything that he can, he's doing daily crosswords and all the rest of it to try and keep his brain ticking over," Isabel added, praising the steps Alastair is taking to alleviate his symptoms.

Pearsall was similarly full of praise for Alastair as she commended his upbeat and honest interview with Camilla.

"The one thing that came out of that interview yesterday with Camilla was Alastair saying this is not the end of his life," Pearsall remarked.

"Yes, it's going to be different but he's not hanging up his interviewing specs, he's going to carry on.

"And he's doing everything, as you say, he's stopped smoking, he's doing longer walks with the dogs, he's doing puzzles to keep his brain occupied and he's in touch with his medical professionals.

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"I think that's the way you should look at this," she continued. "When we all think of dementia or Alzheimer's, we all look at it like a kind of death sentence, somebody sitting in the corner not doing anything.

"But Alastair has proven that you can still get up, you can still do your job, and be as smart as he is while suffering.

"I think the kind of awareness he's going to bring will be invaluable to people," she concluded.

Eamonn brought the discussion to a close with kind words of his own as he said: "Good luck to him and his family.

"And he's got animals in his life, horses in particular, which is good!"