Caroline Flack, Former 'Love Island' Host, Dies by Suicide
Editor's Note
If you experience suicidal thoughts or have lost someone to suicide, the following post could be potentially triggering. You can contact the Crisis Text Line by texting “START” to 741741.
Caroline Flack, former host of the U.K. reality television show “Love Island,” died by suicide at the age of 40, according to a statement her family’s lawyer gave to SkyNews.
“We can confirm that our Caroline passed away today on the 15th February,” Flack’s family said in a statement. “We would ask that the press both respect the privacy of the family at this difficult time.”
Flack began hosting “Love Island” in 2015 and stepped down this winter after allegations that she had allegedly assaulted her boyfriend, tennis player Lewis Burton. Flack was to stand trial on March 4.
She also appeared on a number of other British reality shows, including “The Xtra Factor” and “Strictly Come Dancing.”
Flack is the third person from “Love Island” to die by suicide. Contestants Sophie Gradon and Mike Thalassitis, died in 2018 and 2019 respectively. Gradon’s boyfriend Aaron Armstrong also died by suicide following her death.
After Gradon, Armstrong and Thalassitis’ deaths, some suggested the producers of “Love Island” needed to do more to protect the wellbeing of cast members.
An ITV spokeswoman told Sky News in response to Flack’s death: “Everybody at Love Island and ITV is shocked and saddened by this desperately sad news.”
If this news is hard for you, know you are not alone — and there is help for people who feel suicidal. You can call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or text “START” to 741-741 or if you are in the U.K. text “SHOUT” to 85258. Head here for a list of crisis centers around the world.
Image via Creative Commons/Sean Reynolds