Pioneering TV detective Jill Gascoine who starred in The Gentle Touch is in the final stages of Alzheimer's, reveals her heartbroken husband 

• e-mail

Actress Jill Gascoine is in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's, her husband revealed last night.

Actor Alfred Molina described his wife's prognosis as 'bleak' and said she was in the final stages of the 'cowardly' disease.

Miss Gascoine, 79, who rose to fame as Detective Inspector Maggie Forbes in The Gentle Touch, has been battling with Alzheimer's for at least four years.  

'Alzheimer's is a cowardly disease. It creeps up on you from behind and by the time you realise you've got it you're probably not realising much else. It's a stinker,' Mr Molina said. 

Scroll down for video 

Actor Alfred Molina, has revealed his wife Jill Gascoine is in the latter stages of Alzheimer's

Jill Gascoine rose to fame as Detective Inspector Maggie Forbes in The Gentle Touch, pictured

'Every Alzheimer's case is unique unto itself – the only thing that unites them all is the outcome is always the same. Ultimately, you end up on the same path.' 

Gascoine played a recurring role in the hugely popular 1970s drama The Onedin Line, but she became a household name after playing Forbes in the ITV drama which ran from 1980 to 1984. 

At its height, The Gentle Touch was regularly watched by 18 million viewers.

Gascoine's character was left to bring up her teenage son alone as well as manage her hectic career after the murder of her husband in the show's first episode.

She later went on to appear in the spin-off series, C.A.T.S Eyes, before building a career in America.

In 2010, Gascoine was forced to drop out of what was considered a major comeback role in EastEnders.

Gascoine, pictured, is said to be in the latter stages of the disease with a 'bleak' prognosis, according to her husband

She was hired to play the role of Glenda Mitchell but quit after one day’s filming. 

Gascoine said she felt she ‘lacked the right experience to film such a big continuing drama’. 

Friends have previously revealed how Gascoine started noticing problems with her memory in 2010.

But she was diagnosed in 2012 after her memory loss became more significant. 

In August that year she appeared as a dying mother on stage in LA in a two-week run of the drama Anxiety, with proceeds going to the Alzheimer’s Association. 

It was a play written for her without any lines to remember.

Gascoine lives with her husband, who has appeared in films such as Spider-Man 2, The Da Vinci Code and Raiders of the Lost Ark, in Los Angeles.

She later went on to appear in the spin-off series, C.A.T.S Eyes (left) and is pictured (right) in The Gentle Touch

Gascoine became a household name after playing Forbes in the ITV drama which ran from 1980 to 1984, pictured

Molina, who is 16 years her junior, is the TV star's second husband and she has two children from a previous relationship. 

Speaking about the devastation of his wife's late diagnosis, he compared her fight to that of author Sir Terry Pratchett, who died last year.

Molina told Radio Times: 'Not everyone can approach Alzheimer's with the bravery that Terry Pratchett showed.'

He added: 'I'm scared of a lot of things. Every time I can't find my wallet, every time I forget where I left my car keys, I'm thinking, 'Oh, Jesus.' I have to remind myself there's a difference between not remembering where you put your car keys and, when you find them, not knowing what they're for.

'I've seen that happen at close range – I know the difference.'

He also expressed his frustration at the lack of progression in finding a cure for the disease, or even enough research to help doctors to identify the illness while it was still in its early stages.

He said: 'That's why so much of the research that went into curing it became pointless. Millions and millions of dollars and pounds going into this pit and we were getting nowhere.

'Whereas now, with more knowledge and understanding, you can, at least, start to prepare yourself.'

It is thought 850,000 people in Britain are suffering from the disease, with the figure expected to rise to two million by 2051.

Molina, who is 16 years her junior, is the TV star's second husband and she has two children from a previous relationship, pictured in 2006