Dementia: Unexpected Stories of the Mind

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Exploring the science behind the symptoms of people living with rare dementias.

In this five-part series, neurologist Jules Montague and William Miller go into the homes of people with rare dementias, to discover that dementia is not what we think it is.

In this five-part series, neurologist Jules Montague and William Miller go into the homes of people with rare dementias, to discover that dementia is not what we think it is.

It's a common misconception that dementia is a condition that only affects memory, but Alzheimer's is only one form of dementia: there are many more. Because the symptoms of rare dementias can be so atypical, often in younger people, those with rare dementias wait twice as long for a diagnosis and a third are initially misdiagnosed.

The symptoms of these dementias go far beyond memory loss. William and Jules meet a man who hallucinates cats and rabbits in his living room, a novelist who is losing her words, a former teacher who cannot see what's right in front of her, and a family struggling with a genetic legacy that has defined their past and could determine their future.

Dr Jules Montague is a dementia specialist, and William has personal experience of its impact, having cared for his father, theatre director Jonathan Miller, who died of Alzheimer's in 2019. Together they explore the science behind the symptoms and the poignant and extraordinary ways in which families navigate their lives as a result of these conditions.



Details of organisations offering information and support with dementia are available at the BBC Action Line here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1Y8B7y39T07GnTlMsLPJG2S/information-and-support-dementia

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Dementia: Unexpected Stories of the Mind: Jo

BBC Radio 4 - Dementia: Unexpected Stories of the Mind, Jo

Jules Montague and William Miller meet Jo, who was diagnosed with semantic dementia at 53.

Jules Montague and William Miller meet Jo, who was diagnosed with semantic dementia, or primary progressive aphasia, aged 53. She is losing her ability to speak, read and write.

In the last episode of their series uncovering rare dementias, neurologist Jules Montague and William Miller meet Jo, who has primary progressive aphasia (PPA). A novelist, she is losing her ability to speak, read and write. 

PPA (previously called semantic dementia) usually affects people in their 50s and 60s. This condition erodes vocabulary. People with PPA have difficulty finding the right word. They also lose knowledge of what words mean and what objects are for. 
 
Details of organisations offering information and support with dementia are available at the BBC Action Line here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1Y8B7y39T07GnTlMsLPJG2S/information-and-support-dementia


Producer: Eve Streeter
Original music: A Brief Encounter by Max Walter 
A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

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