By Andy Simon @AndySimon55

Sitting in the work's canteen enjoying my breakfast and reading the mornings newspapers, I came upon an article about the TV soap, Emmerdale, and the storyline concerning Ashley, the ex village vicar, who is suffering fron dementia.

As I was reading the article, a colleague of mine, from Click & Collect, who was reading coincidentally the same story in a different paper, looked up at me and asked, "How would you describe dementia to someone who had no idea what it is?"

Good question.
I sat there for a moment, studying my colleague.

I knew my colleague was a bit of a film buff, and due to their movie knowledge, I began to think about how to answer the question.

And it was then that I came up with an idea.

I said, "Have you ever seen that Stanley Kubrick film, '2001'? My colleague nodded. Great! I was in.

I continued, "Do you remember the scene where Dave, the ship's Captain, was inside the memory banks of HAL, the ships computer, and was removing all those memory chips from HAL's higher function mainframe, one at a time?"

My colleague again: nodded.

Well; that's how I would describe Dementia. Someone inside your head, pulling out your memory chips, one at a time, until there is a point where you cannot remember a few or any events in your life, this includes people, spouses, friends and family.

Only in Dementia Dave's case (as I now like to call this condition) he not only removes your memory chips, he also puts some back in the wrong order, and in the wrong place. And as time goes on, he is doing this so often, the sufferer eventually cannot sort out their memories at all in any order.

The memories just end up as jumbled flashes which come and go, in a random way, before 'Dementia Dave', decides to pull all the chips out, leaving the sufferer with no memory at all.

This of course; can have a terrible emotional effect on the sufferers relatives, friends, and loved ones, who have the unenviable task, of watching the person they love so much, disappear before their eyes, a piece at a time, and are unfortunately unable to prevent it from happening.

There are drugs nowadays, that can slow this vandalism of the mind down, but in the end, the sufferer, due to the relentless destructive power of the condition, simply end up not recognising at all, any of their loved ones.

They lose their memory completely.
That's how Dementia appears to me.

In Ashley's case; his condition, a degenerative vascular dementia, caused by problems with blood supply to the brain, will be the reason dear old Ashley will be killed-off later in the Spring, thus bringing to an end his so far eighteen month dementia storyline, and his almost twenty one years on the popular TV soap.

I looked at my colleague; who appeared a bit dumbstruck. 'That's bloody awful', my colleague said.
"Yes", I replied. "Dementia; is awful."

And to be fair, the trauma dementia brings I suspect, is far greatly endured and more painfully experienced by the loved ones who surround the sufferer, than by the sufferer; themself?

I have to admit; the writing for this intriguing Emmerdale dementia story has been pretty well done, for a TV soap.

In addition; John Middleton who plays Ashley, evidently researched his part very well, and his research and hard work has clearly paid off. John has in my opinion, done a grand job in acting out what would be accurately described; as a very difficult role to play.

Personally; I'm not into TV soaps.
Just ask Kevin O'Sullivan.

And if Kevin is indeed reading this, he'll either be choking on his lunch, or laughing his socks off, as I did once make it very clear to him that I would never write a TV review, about a soap.

In Emmerdales Ashley's case however,
I can make a well deserved exception.

Typically; TV soaps do not interest me, primarily due to the fact that they are not real, and are for the most part, very depressing.

And despite the writers for these TV soaps scribbling a lot of stuff that aim to reflect real-life circumstances and real issues, they don't always for me at least, hit the mark.

However having said all that; Ashley's dementia storyline in Emmerdale, has been the only thing in this TV soap that made me take my eye off from what I was doing, and hold my interest.

There were some moving scenes during this continuing and rather lengthy run up to Ashley's eventual demise, like the wedding ring belonging to Ashley's wife Laurel, brilliantly played I might add by Charlotte Bellamy, whom he gave to another dementia patient.

Then of course was Ashley's father; Sandy Thomas, played by Freddie Jones, who went to see Ashley and quickly realised, that his son didn't recognise him at all. A shocking moment for Sandy.

The look of sorrow on Sandy's face, as he finally realised he had indeed, lost his son, was very moving.

At the time of writing this review, I have absolutely no idea as to how the killing off of Ashley will indeed play out.

But if what has already happened during the last few weeks concerning this rather well written, and at times, moving dementia story is anything to go by, it will follow the typical traditions of all TV soaps, and end in tears.

Well of course it will! It's a TV soap!

And like all TV soaps, they are traditionally at their best and at their happiest, when they are dull, dark, dingy, and depressing.

TV soaps; with a few rare exceptions,
are not really, my cup of tea.

Rest in TV soap peace; Ashley.

Thanks for reading.

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