Love Island's Iain Stirling, Laura Whitmore and Strictly Come Dancing team pay tribute to Caroline Flack
The TV host took her own life yesterday (15th February), her family confirmed
Friends and colleagues of Caroline Flack have paid tribute to the TV host, who died yesterday (15th February).
Flack’s family confirmed yesterday that the ex-Love Island host had died, with the family’s lawyer later confirming to Associated Press that she had taken her own life.
In response, a statement from the Love Island team said they were "shocked and saddened" by the "desperately sad news".
Iain Stirling, who provides the voiceover for Love Island and had worked with Flack since 2015, posted a clip of one of her Strictly Come Dancing performances alongside his own tribute.
Flack's friend Laura Whitmore, who replaced her as host of Love Island for the latest Winter series, shared a touching poem on social media.
Flack won the 12th series of Strictly Come Dancing in 2014, dancing with professional Pasha Kovalev. In a tribute, the Strictly team spoke of her "infection energy" and "passion for dance".
"Words cannot express our sadness, she was simply one of a kind," the statement continued.
On Saturday evening, Flack's X Factor colleague Dermot O'Leary shared a photo of the pair together with a message saying he was "sending love" to her friends and family.
Olly Murs, who co-hosted both The X Factor and spin-off show The Xtra Factor with Flack, also shared an emotional tribute to Flack, saying she was "like a sister" to him.
"My heart is forever broken," Murs wrote. "I’ve lost something today that I’ll never ever get back.. and that’s you.
"From the first moment we met in Birmingham 2011 and had literally 10mins to say hello, get mic’d up and head out to work together on Xtra. We never stopped laughing, flirting (who can forget that), eating cheeseburger chasers, singing (which I always loved hearing), the arguments (which I never won), the disagreements on what jokes to say or what outfits you should wear, these are the moments I’ve always cherished but right now as I write this it’s hit me I won’t have them moments again.
"I haven’t stopped crying since the news, after we stopped working together in 2015 we didn’t see each other as much as we should have but we always spoke on the phone or messaged plus whenever I did see ya out and about, like a sister we’d just kiss and make up and was back being us every single time.
"I remember messaging you at your toughest time to let you know that I never read or listened to any of the crap people were saying about you, I was just worried about my friend. I always knew how fragile you were but I never ever thought this would be the last contact we would have. We always said we was friends for life and trust me you will be with me forever. My kids will know you, my grandkids will and then I’ll see you again, give you a huge hug, a huge kiss, get mic’d up and have you by my side again.
"This will hurt forever, love you cazza, Your Ols."
ITV2 opted not to screen Love Island: Unseen Bits last night following the news of Flack's death, while Channel 4 has also confirmed that it will no longer air The Surjury, a factual entertainment show she had previously filmed.
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Authors
Morgan Jeffery is the Digital Editor for Radio Times, overseeing all editorial output across the brand's digital platforms. He was previously TV Editor at Digital Spy and has featured as a TV expert on BBC Breakfast, BBC Radio 5 Live and Sky Atlantic.
