British star marks Xmas 2 Remember

Carey is launching a new campaign to help relatives spot and support loved ones with dementia over the festive season. Carey, star of upcoming blockbuster The Great Gatsby, will join Dominic Batty who has dementia and his wife Jill at Number 10 to begin the campaign 'Xmas 2 Remember'. The team plan to mark the campaign by hanging a Dementia Friends bauble on the Number 10 tree.

Carey is encouraging people returning home for Christmas to look out for signs that a loved one may be living with dementia. Awareness of the condition is particularly important during the festive season when people may be seeing relatives for the first time in months and notice changes in behaviour.

As part of the campaign, celebrities such as Carey, Lynda Bellingham and John Challis – Only Fools & Horses’ Boycie – will share their favourite Christmas memories on a Tumblr blog (http://xmas-to-remember.tumblr.com).  People will be encouraged to share their favourite memories – whether good or bad, about a treasured present or Christmas dinner disaster – on Twitter using #xmas2remember.  The Tumblr blog will include Alzheimer’s Society information on seeing relatives with dementia over Christmas, and ask people to register their interest in becoming a Dementia Friend.

Actress and Alzheimer’s Society Ambassador Carey Mulligan, whose grandmother 'Nans' has dementia, said

'My favourite Christmas memory is every Christmas we spent with my grandmother. She used to alternate between us and our cousins and every year we were lucky enough to have her was particularly precious

'This Christmas we want people to tell us about their favourite Christmas memory - it can be funny, sad, silly or serious. Write a memory on a piece of paper, take a photo and tweet using #xmas2remember or comment at www.facebook.com/alzheimerssociety'

Jeremy Hughes, Chief Executive at Alzheimer’s Society said:

'Christmas is a time when families who may not see each other all year come together. If you are worried about your own or a loved one’s memory or think they might have dementia it’s important to know that there is help and support available. You can get advice and information on our website or visit www.nhs.org.uk/dementia or you can call our National Dementia Helpline. You can also give yourself the gift of becoming more dementia aware by registering your interest in becoming a dementia friend.'

Dementia is caused by brain diseases which cause the brain to slowly shut down; the most common is Alzheimer’s. Symptoms to spot dementia include struggling to remember recent events, forgetting the names of friends or everyday objects or not being able to recall information you’ve read.

Calls to Alzheimer’s Society National Dementia Helpline increase by a third immediately after Christmas, many of these calls are from worried relatives. The number to call is 0300 222 1122.

• For further information please visit alzheimers.org.uk/xmas2remember