Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling share loving tributes to tragic Love Island pal Caroline Flack

16 February 2020, 11:22

Iain Stirling and Laura Whitmore have shared their anguish over the tragic loss of their friend
Iain Stirling and Laura Whitmore have shared their anguish over the tragic loss of their friend. Picture: PA

Love Island's Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling have shared moving messages to tragic Caroline Flack after it was revealed that she took her own life.

Iain Stirling and Laura Whitmore have shared moving messages to the late Caroline Flack.

The troubled Love Island presenter, 40, took her own life yesterday - leaving her family, friends and fans devastated.

Laura, who took over presenting duties for the current series of Love Island while Caroline awaited trial, tweeted "I'm trying to find the words but I can't" along with a throwback picture of the pair and a poem.

The poem read: "To lose someone so special is really hard to bear, it hardly seems believable that you’re no longer there.

"You left us far too early before your time, it seems and now you’ll never have the chance to fulfill all those dreams.

Read more: Love Island stars pay tribute to Caroline Flack after she's tragically found dead aged 40

"However hard it is though we’ll take comfort in the thought of all the memories we have and the happiness you brought.

"You always lived life to the full but ours won’t be the same until the day when we can see your smiling face again."

She also took to Instagram posting a video of her and Caroline dancing on a night out and said: "See you on the dance floor", followed by a heart emoji.

Read more: Olly Murs 'hasnn't stopped crying' since learning of close pal Caroline Flack's death

View this post on Instagram

See you on the dance floor ❤️

A post shared by Laura (@thewhitmore) on

Laura's boyfriend Iain, who provides the voice over for Love Island, also took the opportunity to make a public statement about his friend.

Laura's boyfriend, Scottish comedian Iain Stirling who does the voiceover for the series took to Instagram to share his condolences to his friend and former colleague who he had worked with since 2015.

He posted a clip of the star showing her dancing to Angels when she took part in (and won) the 2014 series of Strictly Come Dancing.

He wrote: "Today my friend slow motion walked into heaven. I will miss her always. Thank you for everything."

Laura took over as the presenter of Love Island series six in January, after Caroline stepped down following an assault charge at the end of last year.

When Caroline stood down, Laura paid tribute to her saying: "To say I'm excited to be heading to Cape Town to host Love Island, the biggest show on television, is an understatement. I want to thank ITV for trusting me at the helm of this huge show.

"I wish it was in better circumstances; Caroline is a brilliant host and also a friend. We've spoken a lot in the last few days since she stepped down. She has been very kind to me and strongly pushed me for this role."

"I've watched her host every series and know I have big boots to fill. I will try and do it justice."

Caroline also took to Instagram at the time to say: "I'm glad it’s Laura ... she loves the show as much as I do ... again ... thank you for you continuous messages of support ... it’s a really rough time ... but I’m doing all can to keep my head above the water and sort this all out."

In her last post on Instagram, Caroline shared a collage of pictures of her with her dog. Back in December she wrote in a post: "In a world where you can be anything, be kind."

View this post on Instagram

Anything ... we can literally choose to be anything ....

A post shared by Caroline (@carolineflack) on

A family statement read: "We can confirm that our Caroline passed away today on the 15th February.

"We would ask that the press both respect the privacy of the family at this difficult time."

An ITV spokesperson said: "Everybody at Love Island and ITV is shocked and saddened by this desperately sad news. Caroline was a much loved member of the Love Island team and our sincere thoughts and condolences are with her family and friends." 

If you identify with the topics raised in this article, we encourage you to reach out to the Samaritans. You can call them for free on 116 123, or visit their website, www.samaritans.org.

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