The dementia signs you might miss

Michael Gove: Machiavellian or misunderstood? | Britain’s public-sector pension albatross hits £5.8 trillion

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Saturday, 13 September 2025 Issue No. 202

Good morning. Dementia is an illness that wrecks lives and families. Although there is no cure, early diagnosis can help mitigate the symptoms. That’s what makes Ella Nunn’s report below so important. Ella writes about the unusual signs that are often missed, but which can make all the difference if caught sooner rather than later. Elsewhere, Michael Gove has spoken to The Telegraph’s Daily T podcast. The former Conservative politician, now editor of The Spectator, is a divisive figure who became notorious for his brutal political betrayals. Camilla Tominey, our Associate Editor, explains below why Gove says he’s happier than ever. Lastly, don’t forget to sign up to Allister Heath’s new weekly Saturday politics newsletter covering the chaos in Westminster, Britain’s fragile political economy and our uncertain place in the world. Chris Evans, Telegraph Editor P.S. You can enjoy four months’ free access to The Telegraph. Cancel at any time.   In today’s edition ‘I left my wife for a woman I thought I loved. She ended up making my life hell’ — How a ‘work is bad for you’ culture broke Britain — Plus, a proper Saturday night dinner

We believe in freedom Free press. Free speech. Free markets. If you share these values, join us today. Enjoy four months’ free access to The Telegraph. Cancel at any time. Subscribe now   The unusual signs of dementia you might not spot Ella Nunn Health Writer   We all recognise memory loss and “senior moments” as key symptoms of dementia, yet the condition can manifest in smaller and more subtle ways long before a diagnosis is made. “Sometimes there are people who have dementia and whose memory is fine,” says Jonathan Schott, chief medical officer for Alzheimer’s Research UK. “Instead, the condition may affect their vision or their behaviour.” Usually affectionate, it was when Bruce Willis started to become indifferent to his family that his wife, Emma, began worrying about him. In her new book, The Unexpected Journey, she describes how, along with changes in his personality, there were small signs – such as developing a stutter – that made her realise something might be wrong. Emma Heming Willis and Bruce Willis If we can identify these small and unusual signs of dementia, it may help with early diagnosis which is key to informing treatment pathways and mitigating the condition. “We think that the underlying brain changes that cause dementia happen many years before symptoms arise, and start slowly and subtly,” says Prof Schott. Early warning signs may include someone starting to like foods they previously disliked, exhibiting strange behaviours such as eating from someone else’s plate, and becoming less empathetic. Read on for the full list of unusual symptoms and when to seek help. Continue reading ➤   Michael Gove: ‘The things that make someone electable – looks, charisma, all the rest of it – I don’t have’ Camilla Tominey Associate Editor   Michael Gove has always been a polarising figure – and not just to the Left, plenty of whom still despise him for his education reforms. Some in the Conservative Party regard the former Tory MP for Surrey Heath as a genius media performer who was one of the most effective communicators of his generation. Others, including his former colleague Nadine Dorries, who recently defected to Reform, have never forgiven him for “knifing” Boris Johnson in the aftermath of the EU referendum. And then there are the Remainers such as David Cameron and George Osborne who saw his support for Brexit as a betrayal. My Daily T podcast co-presenter Tim Stanley and I spent an hour grilling Gove on everything from politics to his penchant for performance – and even those gay rumours. With characteristic Caledonian charm, he revealed himself to be happier than ever as he has morphed from gamekeeper to poacher as the new editor of The Spectator. Machiavellian or misunderstood? You decide… Continue reading ➤   Opinion William Sitwell Thanks, Gary Lineker, for reminding us why we’re not missing you The presenter’s NTA win doesn’t erase the fact: he was sacked for turning Match of the Day into a soapbox Continue reading ➤     Ben Marlow Labour has trashed one of Britain’s last success stories Continue reading ➤     Kamal Ahmed Reeves may be close to breaking a key manifesto promise Continue reading ➤   Sharpen your talking points Explore incisive opinion from Britain’s leading comment writers Enjoy four months’ free access to The Telegraph. Cancel at any time. Subscribe now   Today’s Headlines Burnham prepares to challenge Starmer for leadership Father hands in his son over shooting of Charlie Kirk Exclusive: Well-known figure in English cricket investigated over sexual assault and spiking claims Covid vaccine linked to child deaths, Trump administration to say Fast-growing pigs trigger jamon war in Spain Summer is over with 70mph winds to batter Britain   Weekend reads Britain’s huge public-sector pensions time bomb For decades, nurses, teachers and civil servants have foregone higher salaries in exchange for ultra-generous pensions to see them through their twilight years. But how sustainable is this trade-off? Today, Telegraph Money exposes the £6 trillion bill – twice the national debt – for Britain’s public-sector pension schemes that experts warn are now a “ticking time bomb”. Continue reading ➤   Rylan Clark and Rob Rinder: ‘We’re like a married couple – we argue and don’t have sex’ Having scooped a Bafta for Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour, Rob Rinder and Rylan Clark are off on their travels again – this time to India. The duo talk to Julia Llewellyn Smith about their experiences across the subcontinent, but as Clark reveals, his knowledge about EM Forster – whose work inspired their journey – was perhaps a little lacking. “I was five days into Delhi, talking about ‘Ian’, and [the producers] were like, ‘Who’s he?’” says Clark. “I was like ‘Ian Forster?’ I genuinely thought this guy Rob had been on about was a man called Ian.” Continue reading ➤   ‘I left my wife for a woman I thought I loved. She ended up making my life hell’ Surveys indicate that more than half of Britons have considered infidelity, but the resulting fallout can be devastating, as one anonymous writer discovered. He talks of how a moment of weakness at a school reunion turned into an affair that destroyed his marriage and left him divorced, penniless and alone – while his ex-wife went on to marry his friend. Continue reading ➤   How a ‘work is bad for you’ culture broke Britain The idea that work is a good thing – offering purpose, structure and, of course, money – hardly seems controversial. But nowadays, write Gordon Rayner and Michael Murphy, Britain is fostering a mental-health culture that demonises work. The result is a benefits system that prematurely casts people on the scrapheap and is bankrupting the country. And the fix, evidence from abroad suggests, is devastatingly simple. Continue reading ➤   ‘I was an NHS worker – what I saw drove me out’ The NHS is facing a significant “brain drain”, with 10 per cent of healthcare workers leaving the service last year and nearly one in five doctors estimated to be considering quitting the profession. With lack of support and poor work-life balance among the reasons, we spoke with two former NHS workers about why they wanted to work in healthcare, their experiences in the system and what drove them to leave. Continue reading ➤   Your Saturday London’s 10 coolest neighbourhoods Doing things “like a local” has become one of the 21st century’s dominant travel trends. Because if you really want to find the soul of a city, it pays to get off the beaten track and visit one of its up-and-coming quarters – to which residents, rather than tourists, flock for bustling restaurants, cosy pubs and independent boutiques. With that in mind, we’ve created a guide to London’s 10 coolest neighbourhoods, nominated by locals, featuring the best places within them to eat, drink, shop and sleep. Continue reading ➤ Below are two more articles that I hope will brighten your weekend: Tom Brown, our Gardening Expert, gives his essential advice about what you can do this autumn to revive your patchy lawn. The pencil skirt is back. Read Jessica Burrell’s guide to how to wear one – and look modern.   Andrew Baker’s Saturday Quiz Gather round for the latest instalment of my Saturday quiz. You can find the answers at the end of the newsletter. Which author, born on this day in 1916, wrote The Gremlins, Matilda and Fantastic Mr Fox, among many other tales? Which is the smallest species of fox, and also has the longest ears? What was the name of the Disney elephant who flew with the aid of his ears? In which Californian city is the original Disneyland, opened in 1957? What is the name of Anaheim’s professional ice hockey team?   Ellie’s Weekend Table Chicken and chips A proper Saturday night dinner Romy Gill’s Tandoori masala kukkad (Tandoori poussin) Eleanor Steafel Feature writer and recipe columnist   It’s a chicken-and-chips kind of Saturday night, I think. Don’t you? I’m considering giving a spatchcocked chicken the Romy Gill treatment, marinating a bird from the butcher in Gill’s mix of fresh ginger, coriander, tandoori masala, yoghurt, garlic and lime, then roasting it and serving it alongside a big salad and homemade chips (worth noting this chip recipe comes with the added bonus of garlic butter). Romy Gill’s aloor singara (Bengali samosas) It’s tempting to make Gill’s aloor singara (Bengali samosas) to have first. As for any leftover chicken, I think it’d be lovely turned into a salad for lunch during the week. Something like this one with black beans, roasted tomatoes and corn. Or a spiced version of a chicken Caesar. Diana Henry’s chipotle chicken salad with black beans, roast tomatoes and sweetcorn As we are fast approaching soup season, chicken stock is a handy thing to have knocking about. Try making one with the bones. The marinade will add a lovely background flavour, and make for beautiful soups and stews. Happy cooking, and see you next Saturday! Eleanor writes a weekly Recipes newsletter every Friday. Sign up here.   Puzzles Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including PlusWord, Sorted, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.   The solution to yesterday’s clue was COLLEGIAL. Come back tomorrow for the answer to today’s puzzle.   Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow. Chris Evans, Editor P.S. Please send me your thoughts on this newsletter. You can email me here. Quiz answers: Roald Dahl Fennec fox Dumbo Anaheim The Mighty Ducks

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