‘My dad is all I have left’: Charlie Starmer-Smith Jnr shines light on father’s dementia with single to be played at Twickenham as tribute to legendary BBC and ITV rugby commentator
- Charlie Starmer-Smith wrote his single Spotlight for a BBC radio competition
- Single will be played at Twickenham before Barbarians vs Samoa on Saturday
- Nigel Starmer-Smith worked as commentator for both the BBC and ITV
- Starmer-Smith revealed in March his father had been diagnosed with dementia
The son of legendary rugby commentator Nigel Starmer-Smith has released a single about his father’s dementia battle, which will be aired today at Twickenham during Barbarians v Samoa.
During lockdown, Charlie Starmer-Smith wrote Spotlight — which was released on Friday in aid of the Alzheimer’s Society — responding to a BBC radio competition.
Starmer-Smith Jnr’s late mother Ros encouraged him to enter before she died of cancer this year.
Former BBC and ITV rugby commentator Nigel Starmer-Smith is suffering from dementia
Starmer-Smith (left) introduced the Rugby Special for the BBC for 15 years
His son Charles has released a single that will be played at Twickenham on Saturday
Charlie Starmer-Smith also lost his older sister to leukaemia when she was 16, and then his younger brother to Hodgkin lymphoma at 19.
‘With my brother and sister dying when I was young, my Dad is all I have left and it has made me even more determined to do something positive,’ he said.
Starmer-Smith’s song, Spotlight, can be downloaded by clicking here