Olu Jacobs suffered from degenerative brain disease — Joke Silva

Following the death of veteran actor Olu Jacobs at 84 on Wednesday, a 2021 interview in which his wife, actress Joke Silva, first publicly opened up about his health condition has resurfaced.

Silva disclosed during an interview with media personality Chude Jideonwo in November 2021 that Jacobs had been living with dementia with Lewy bodies, DLB, for several years.

It was the first time Silva publicly confirmed what the family had been dealing with, after concerns about Jacobs’ health and reports about his absence from the screen had circulated.

“He is dealing with issues, and it has been going on for a couple of years. It is known as dementia with Lewy bodies. It is a degenerative disease that affects the brain, and it is almost like a Parkinson’s type of disease… It’s the brain it affects, so you don’t see the shaking. It affects the person,” she said.

Silva, who described the disclosure as difficult, added, “First time I’m saying this publicly… that is what we have been dealing with, but the thing is, it is hard on him because he doesn’t understand what is going on and it is hard on us family members as well.”

The revelation came after years of Jacobs being largely away from the movie scene and amid public concern over his health. Reports at the time also noted that the actor had continued to make occasional public appearances despite the concerns surrounding his health.

In January 2023, Silva spoke about how she had learned to cope with her husband’s condition during an appearance on Mercy Johnson’s YouTube cooking programme, Mercy’s Menu.

She said reaching a point of acceptance had helped her deal with what had become their new reality.

“I think for me, it was getting to the place of acceptance… When you get to the stage of acceptance that this is your new reality, honestly it is so much easier. You realise this is the new season, you’re walking with your partner, and you meet them where they are,” Silva said.

In another emotional interview with Nancy Isime in July 2023, Silva spoke about how the condition had changed their relationship and the difficulty of accepting the changes.

“There was a point of acceptance for me that everything happening is reality and it is like the person I married, 80 per cent of the time, is no longer there,” she said.

Silva, however, recalled the man Jacobs had been before the illness and emphasised that her love for him remained.

“When he was there, he was an incredible father to his children and an amazing husband; he was practically my best friend,” she said.

She added, “So in this journey of dementia now, it’s like I am looking after my father. The husband I knew is no more and there for me, but this man that is here is someone I still love.”

Jacobs, born on July 11, 1942, was one of Nigeria’s most celebrated actors, with a career spanning theatre, television and film in Nigeria and the United Kingdom.

He won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in 2007 and received the Industry Merit Award at the 2013 Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards and the MAA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016.

He was also conferred with the national honour of Member of the Order of the Federal Republic in 2011.