{"id":645565,"date":"2026-06-18T16:05:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T16:05:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/645565\/"},"modified":"2026-06-18T16:05:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T16:05:13","slug":"i-directed-jon-snows-new-documentary-he-shows-how-we-can-live-with-alzheimers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/645565\/","title":{"rendered":"I directed Jon Snow\u2019s new documentary \u2013 he shows how we can live with Alzheimer\u2019s"},"content":{"rendered":"

Standing alongside award-winning journalist Jon Snow<\/a> this week at Bafta as the crowd gave him a standing ovation, I was overcome with emotion. We were there for the screening of my new documentary \u2013 Jon Snow<\/a>: A Last Big Story, which documents his diagnosis with Alzheimer\u2019s<\/a>. The film was the culmination of thousands of hours spent filming with the former Channel 4 News presenter over the past two years, and I was proud to have been a part of bringing his story to the world. <\/p>\n

It was in the summer of 2024 that I first sat down with Jon and his wife, Precious, at their local pub in the English countryside to talk about their motivation for making the film. Leaving Channel 4 News had been devastating for him, she said. It wasn\u2019t just a job, it was his identity, and after retiring, he fell into a deep depression. It was during this time that Jon was also diagnosed with Alzheimer\u2019s<\/a>, after reluctantly agreeing to be tested when his wife noticed he was having memory problems<\/a>. <\/p>\n

For four years, the couple had kept the diagnosis private<\/a>. Precious, an epidemiologist and neuroscientist and a fiercely private person, had resolved to keep the story out of the media. But both of them had grown \u201csick and tired\u201d of hiding Jon\u2019s condition. Jon felt strongly that he wanted to break the stigma of the disease, and if he didn\u2019t speak about it, who would? We don\u2019t avoid people with cancer, he reasoned, so we shouldn\u2019t avoid people with dementia, either. We set out to make a film that would open up that conversation. <\/p>\n

\"LauraLaura Warner films Jon Snow for the forthcoming Channel 4 documentary (Basement Film\/Channel 4)<\/p>\n

The sense of responsibility I felt as its director was huge. I didn\u2019t want to make a film in which viewers simply watched a great man, a national treasure and a great broadcaster, struggling with illness. I wanted it to be experiential. My aim was that the audience would feel the world through Jon\u2019s eyes. The question wasn\u2019t \u201cWhat has Jon lost?\u201d but \u201cWho is Jon now, and how does he experience the world?\u201d <\/p>\n

Within days of beginning filming with Jon, it had become clear that his brilliant brain<\/a> was still fizzing with energy and ideas, and his mind was a remarkable repository of stories. He flitted between anecdotes about meeting the Pope, Nelson Mandela and Mikhail Gorbachev. As a director and cinematographer, I realised the film would need to be made not just with sensitivity and patience, but in a way that reflected how Jon\u2019s condition affected the way he communicated. <\/p>\n

He has a treasure trove of experiences and memories of his incredible past, but he no longer spoke in a linear fashion, so conversations took longer and required more patience. What I learned was that, despite this, they were ultimately more interesting and surprising. I would allow Jon, his mind and his experiences to lead the direction at his pace. I wanted the film to be sensitive to his legacy as Britain\u2019s foremost news correspondent, and to provide a sense of comfort to others like Jon and Precious who are going through a similar journey. <\/p>\n

There were many times I reflected back on what Precious had told me at the start of filming: some days he may not remember your name, but he will always remember how you made him feel, and that\u2019s what\u2019s important. <\/p>\n

\"LauraLaura says she wanted to show not what Jon had lost, but how he sees the world now (Basement Film\/Channel 4)<\/p>\n

Building a really trusted relationship with Precious was key throughout filming, as she was the person who knew Jon best. She balances her work as a scientist with raising their five-year-old son and caring for Jon, as they split their time between the UK and her home country of Zimbabwe<\/a>. Her scientific background means she really understands what is happening in his brain<\/a>, and does everything she can to quell the tide of decay. Part of this is giving Jon as much agency and independence as possible, with the right scaffolding to support him. <\/p>\n

It was this approach that led us to the central \u201cbig story\u201d of the film itself, when Jon inadvertently stumbled on the hidden story of a horrific mining disaster in Zambia<\/a> during the course of our filming. This scene marked a turning point in our time together. For the first two months, up until this day, Jon and I had been in a bit of a dance. Despite saying he wanted to make his \u201ccoming out\u201d film about Alzheimer\u2019s, after the years he had spent \u2013 as many do \u2013 masking the condition, there was still some embarrassment about discussing it openly. <\/p>\n

We had just finished filming the couple\u2019s family holiday in Zimbabwe, complete with safari and the Victoria Falls, and I was becoming concerned that we were yet to capture anything of note, when Cath, our safari guide, sat down with Jon during a break in filming and began speaking to him about a disaster that had happened in Zambia. It had resulted in the release of huge quantities of toxic acidic waste into rivers, and onto farmland used by a thousand local subsistence farmers. The contamination affected wildlife, fish stocks, crops and drinking water, slowly poisoning the whole community, and these shocking events had barely been covered. <\/p>\n

As Jon listened to the details and the impact on the local people, I watched his face change as the muscle memory from his time as a journalist kicked in. His eyes lit up, and he became Jon again, an incredible confidence moving through his body. Alzheimer\u2019s can strip you of your confidence, but at that moment, he suddenly knew exactly who he was. I picked up my camera and began filming. I knew we had found our film. <\/p>\n

I immediately turned to Precious and said: \u201cThis is our story.\u201d It wasn\u2019t an obituary for the broadcaster Jon once was, but a portrait of who he is now: a man still determined to expose injustice and get to the heart of a story. She felt strongly \u2013 like us \u2013 that he needed this. One last big story. It was an idea that would eventually become the title of the film. For months we\u2019d been trying to construct a story about Alzheimer\u2019s, but Jon turned it into a film about other people, which was typical of a man who had spent his life giving to others. That\u2019s always been his gift. <\/p>\n

He\u2019s remarkably pragmatic, and has made peace with the diagnosis. He doesn\u2019t spend his time dwelling on what he\u2019s lost. Instead, he focuses on what he still has, and what he can still contribute<\/p>\n

For the rest of our time filming, it was clear that Jon still had so much to offer those around him if they were willing to take the time to listen. I soon realised that every conversation I had with him left me enriched. Yes, these conversations sometimes meandered, or felt confused, but they were always full of insight accumulated over nearly eight decades of life. I wanted, more than anything, to communicate this \u2013 for the sake of others living with this disease, and their families. <\/p>\n

There were many moments during filming when the crew worried about Jon\u2019s safety. His nephew Charles, and his longtime friend and colleague Ben de Pear, who had accompanied us, were understandably protective. There was always a balance between respecting Jon\u2019s determination to doggedly report the story, and making sure he was safe. But Jon absolutely loved being back in the field. Every day he remembered more names, more details and more of the story, and became more alive. It was as if journalism reactivated a part of his brain<\/a> in the way that music does for so many others living with this condition. <\/p>\n

\"Laura:Laura: \u2018I wanted the film, in part, to become a memory box of his and Precious\u2019s life together\u2019 (Basement Film\/Channel 4)<\/p>\n

Of course, we still saw signs of Alzheimer\u2019s. His memory so often failed him that each day we felt it prudent to re-consent Jon to filming. As the day progressed, particularly in the evenings, we\u2019d see behaviour that is commonly known in Alzheimer\u2019s as \u201csundowning\u201d, as his brain became tired. He would get confused, lose his phone, forget where he\u2019d put something. <\/p>\n

There were also moments that were deeply moving. We filmed him trying to buy parsley in a supermarket and becoming confused about why he was there. Those moments showed how Alzheimer\u2019s slowly chips away at independence and confidence. Yet it was never clear-cut. The next day, he would be interviewing activists in Zambia and displaying all the compassion, curiosity and humanity that have defined his career.<\/p>\n

Precious was absolutely central to everything we did throughout the film. She is not only Jon\u2019s wife but also a neuroscientist and an epidemiologist, with a PhD in the field. She understands exactly what\u2019s happening in his brain, and how to support him. She works incredibly hard to preserve his independence and confidence while balancing a demanding scientific career and caring for both Jon and their young son. One thing that became very clear while filming was how much Jon worries about the impact his condition has on her as his companion. The love between them is extraordinary. I wanted the film, in part, to become a memory box of their life together.<\/p>\n

\"Laura,Laura, centre left, along with Jon and Precious at the documentary\u2019s premiere (Channel 4)<\/p>\n

Looking back, though, what surprised me most throughout filming was Jon\u2019s kindness. I first worked with him 25 years ago at the very start of my career, when I was a researcher. What I remember was his extraordinary ability to make everyone feel important, whether they were a head of state or a junior member of the team, and this never changed. <\/p>\n

During filming, I watched as he spoke with activists in Zambia, including one woman whose father had died in a mining accident when she was a child. She had spent years bottling up her grief before Jon sat with her, listened, and encouraged her to tell her story. She ended up crying about her father\u2019s death as they spoke. His reaction as he comforted her, and apologised for taking her to that place, was deeply moving. Watching that interaction back on film afterwards, there was no sign of Alzheimer\u2019s. There was simply an incredibly compassionate human being helping someone else. That\u2019s who Jon is. <\/p>\n

Having spent so much time with Jon, the main thing I admire enormously is his attitude. He\u2019s remarkably pragmatic, and has made peace with the diagnosis. He doesn\u2019t spend his time dwelling on what he\u2019s lost. Instead, he focuses on what he still has, and what he can still contribute.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, what I hope audiences take away from the film is that people with Alzheimer\u2019s still have a voice worth hearing, and value in society. Too often, society writes people off. But this is not a story about decline. It\u2019s a story about dignity, purpose, agency and human connection. <\/p>\n

Jon Snow<\/a> is one of our great storytellers and, in many ways, one of our history keepers. The tragedy of Alzheimer\u2019s is that those memories are gradually disappearing. What this film does is preserve some of that history, and remind us that, even now, Jon still has an enormous amount to teach us about how to be human \u2013 if we are patient enough to listen. <\/p>\n

As told to Andrea Thompson<\/p>\n

\u2018Jon Snow: A Last Big Story\u2019 airs on Channel 4 on Saturday 20 June at 8pm <\/p>\n

The film was made in association with Alzheimer\u2019s Society <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Standing alongside award-winning journalist Jon Snow this week at Bafta as the crowd gave him a standing ovation,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":645566,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[96,2839,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-645565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-entertainment","tag-movies","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=645565"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645565\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/645566"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=645565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=645565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=645565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}