Sir Terry Pratchett, Seth Rogen and James Nesbitt Star In Alzheimer's Awareness TV Ad Campaign

Sir Terry Pratchett Stars In Alzheimer's Awareness TV Ad Campaign
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Sir Terry Pratchett is posthumously starring in a hard-hitting TV ad campaign waging war on Alzheimer's - the disease which he died from in March this year.

The author and several other famous faces, including Hollywood actor and charity ambassador Seth Rogen and James Nesbitt, have joined forces for Alzheimer's Research UK's Fightback campaign.

Rogen, whose mother-in-law is living with early-onset Alzheimer's disease, said: "Alzheimer's disease is a global challenge and it doesn't respect ethnicity or wealth, and with a rapidly ageing global population, it's one of our biggest threats.

"Alzheimer's Research UK's campaign is a bit of a wake-up call to the scale of the challenge, but also a call to arms for us to back research to beat it.

"We shouldn't think of Alzheimer's as different to other big diseases, at its root are brain cells dying and this is a physical process that scientists can put a stop to, given the resources to do the job. I hope this campaign gets folks talking about the disease and moves us towards a place where we really start to fight it, I'm proud to be part of it."

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Sir Terry Pratchett

The hard-hitting advert, created by the award-winning creative agency ais London and edited by the multi-award winning Sam Sneade, premiered during the Britain's Got Talent live finals on Saturday.

It also features TV personality Arlene Phillips, Dame Joan Bakewell and broadcaster Katie Derham.

Phillips, carer to her father who has Alzheimer's disease, said: "The Alzheimer's Research UK advert brings home the urgent need for more investment in dementia research and I hope it will launch something of a fightback against the condition.

"Dementia is not something we have to accept, it's brought on by diseases that our scientists can beat if we all get behind them. We shouldn't have to just cope with dementia, we should be able to defeat it."

Tim Parry, head of communications at Alzheimer's Research UK, said: "Alzheimer's Research UK's core aim is to defeat Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia and we believe that with continued funding and world class research, we will make a breakthrough.

"To give us the best chance of beating the condition sooner, we wanted this advert to have a disruptive approach in educating the public, to challenge people's perception that nothing can be done to tackle diseases like Alzheimer's, and to demonstrate that research has already gone a long way in taming other serious diseases and can do the same for dementia."

The TV advert is due to go out again during the Emmerdale ad break on Tuesday and then on leading digital channels throughout June.

10 Symptoms For Alzheimer's
Finding it difficult to complete home tasks (01 of10)
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The Alzheimer's Association says that people who have the illness will find it difficult to complete daily tasks - this could range from cleaning to forgetting the rules of a game played regularly. (credit:Alexandra Grablewski via Getty Images)
Finding it hard to read and understand visual images.(02 of10)
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The Alzheimer's Association claim that people may find it hard to read or understand certain images if suffering from the disease. They also may find it difficult to determine colour or contrast, which may stop them from driving. (credit:Rob Lewine via Getty Images)
Misplacing things(03 of10)
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People with Alzheimer's may put things in unusual places. They may lose things and also accuse others of stealing. This may become more and more frequent. (credit:ladi59 via Getty Images)
Confusion with time or places.(04 of10)
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The Alzheimer's Association says that people who have the condition can lose track of time, dates and seasons.Sufferers may have trouble understanding things if they are not happening promptly. They may also lose track of where they are and how they got there. (credit:mediaphotos via Getty Images)
Problems with speaking or writing (05 of10)
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According to the Alzheimer's Association, people suffering from this type of dementia may find it difficult joining a conversation - they may also stop in the middle of conversations and don't know how to start againWriting coherently can also be a problem. (credit:Nick Dolding via Getty Images)
Solving problems.(06 of10)
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Sufferers may feel changes in their ability to follow a plan or work with numbers. They'll probably have trouble following a basic recipe, or keeping track of monthly bills.They might find it difficult to concentrate and take much longer to do things than they did before.Source: Alzheimer's Association (credit:Martin Barraud via Getty Images)
Withdrawel from social activities.(07 of10)
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Someone with Alzheimer's may remove themselves from certain hobbies/interests and social activities. (credit:Ryan McVay via Getty Images)
Memory Loss (08 of10)
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According to the Alzheimer's Association, one of the most seen symptoms is memory loss (especially recently processed info). For example: forgetting important dates or events; asking for the same information over and over again and needing memory aides( electronic reminders). (credit:Simon Winnall via Getty Images)
Mood changes(09 of10)
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The mood and personalities of people with Alzheimer's disease can change, they can become confused, suspicious, depressed, fearful or anxious. They may be easily upset at home, at work, with friends or in places where they are out of their comfort zone. Source: Alzheimer's Association (credit:The Welfare & Medical Care via Getty Images)
Decreased or poor judgment.(10 of10)
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People with Alzheimer's may have poor judgment. This can include confusion over how much money they should spend.They may also pay less attention to grooming and cleaning themselves regularly.Source: Alzheimer's Association (credit:Martin Moos via Getty Images)