News | Entertainment
5 Feb 2025 19:45
NZCity News
NZCity CalculatorReturn to NZCity

  • Start Page
  • Personalise
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • Finance
  • Shopping
  • Jobs
  • Horoscopes
  • Lotto Results
  • Photo Gallery
  • Site Gallery
  • TVNow
  • Dating
  • SearchNZ
  • NZSearch
  • Crime.co.nz
  • RugbyLeague
  • Make Home
  • About NZCity
  • Contact NZCity
  • Your Privacy
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Join for Free

  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Wendy Williams feels like she's "in prison" and insists she is "not cognitively impaired"

    The 60-year-old star - who hosted her eponymous talk show from 2008 until 2022 before Sherri Shepherd took over her slot - is under the guardianship of lawyer Sabrina Morrissey and living in a care facility, almost a year after her care team announced she had been diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia.


    Calling into 'The Breakfast Club' on Thursday (16.01.25), she said: "I am not cognitively impaired, you know what I'm saying? But I feel like I'm in prison.

    "I'm in this place where the people are in their 90s and their 80s and their 70s... There's something wrong with these people here on this floor."

    Primary progressive aphasia is a rare condition that affects the nervous system and inhibits the ability to communicate, while frontotemporal dementia affects personality, behaviour and language.

    The former daytime host has been under a guardianship since 2022.

    Her niece Alex also phoned into the morning show and voiced her support for her aunt.

    Williams' niece, Alex, also phoned into the show to support her aunt.

    She claimed: "My aunt sounds great. I've seen her, in a very limited capacity, but I've seen her and we're talking to her. This does not match an incapacitated person.

    "And that's why we say she's in a luxury prison, because she is being held and she is being punished for whatever reason that other people are coming up with as to why she has to be kept in this position."

    In a press release from her care team announcing her diagnosis last year, they addressed speculation after she had begun "to lose words, act erratically at times, and have difficulty understanding financial transactions".

    They continued: "The decision to share this news was difficult and made after careful consideration, not only to advocate for understanding and compassion for Wendy, but to raise awareness about aphasia and frontotemporal dementia and support the thousands of others facing similar circumstances.

    "Unfortunately, many individuals diagnosed with aphasia and frontotemporal dementia face stigma and misunderstanding, particularly when they begin to exhibit behavioural changes but have not yet received a diagnosis."

    Almost a year ago, Wendy's sister Wanda Finnie claimed that she wasn't made aware of her sibling's diagnosis after she was placed in a facility to be treated for cognitive issues and that the family had received no updates on Wendy since she spent time with them in Florida in 2021.

    Meanwhile, this week a source told PEOPLE: "Wendy Williams's family is unable to speak on her current condition and location due to ongoing litigation and the fact that they have largely been denied contact.

    "But they are all rooting and praying for Wendy and want to express their well wishes as she celebrates her 60th birthday. She was, is and always will be an icon."

    © 2025 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

     Other Entertainment News
     05 Feb: Julia Fox would drop everything to be in anything Charli XCX does
     05 Feb: Cyndi Lauper will never resort to using weight loss jabs
     05 Feb: Shakira has had a "hard couple of years" since splitting from Gerard Pique
     05 Feb: 'Saturday Night Live' creator Lorne Michaels insists any reports that special guests have been "banned" from the late-night sketch show are false
     05 Feb: Dame Sheila Hancock has signed up for a course to help with her anxiety
     05 Feb: Billy Ray Cyrus gushed that he "couldn't be prouder" of his estranged daughter Miley Cyrus for her Grammy win
     05 Feb: Zendaya's stylist Law Roach is "happy" for his friend after she got engaged to Tom Holland
     Top Stories

    RUGBY RUGBY
    Blues coach Vern Cotter's given an insight into how he'll use his three All Black first-five options as they defend their Super Rugby Pacific title More...


    BUSINESS BUSINESS
    Strikes today and Friday by medical lab workers - could lead to five straight days of testing site shortages countrywide More...



     Today's News

    Entertainment:
    Julia Fox would drop everything to be in anything Charli XCX does 19:34

    Entertainment:
    Cyndi Lauper will never resort to using weight loss jabs 19:04

    Environment:
    New Zealand's had its coldest January in nearly a decade 18:57

    International:
    Donald Trump says he wants the US to control Gaza and for Palestinians to be resettled in other nations 18:47

    Cricket:
    A double injury blow for Australia ahead of cricket's one-day Champions Trophy 18:37

    Entertainment:
    Shakira has had a "hard couple of years" since splitting from Gerard Pique 18:34

    Politics:
    Key takeaways from Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu's press conference in Washington DC 18:17

    Health & Safety:
    Experts are disputing medical evidence used to convict UK nurse Lucy Letby  18:07

    Law and Order:
    A man's in custody after a standoff in Auckland's Waterview 18:07

    Entertainment:
    'Saturday Night Live' creator Lorne Michaels insists any reports that special guests have been "banned" from the late-night sketch show are false 18:04


     News Search






    Power Search


    © 2025 New Zealand City Ltd