Caroline’s stand-in blames online trolls and the Press
NEW Love Island host Laura Whitmore broke down while attacking online trolls over Caroline Flack’s death.
The presenter was tearful as she opened her radio show yesterday by criticising media scrutiny and those who ‘demonise and tear down success’.
She also appealed to listeners to ‘be kind’ to others after her friend’s death.
Miss Whitmore, 3 , replaced Miss Flack for the current series of the ITV2 reality show after she was arrested for assaulting boyfriend Lewis Burton.
‘At aged 0 Caroline Flack made a decision to take her own life and I am going to talk about her and give her the respect that she deserves,’ she said when opening her BBC 5 Live show.
She said Miss Flack was ‘vivacious, loving and had a passion for life’.
She added: ‘I’m not going to pretend that she was perfect but is anyone?
‘She lived every mistake publicly under the scrutiny of the media.
‘Caroline loved to love. That’s all she wanted which is why Love Island was important to her because the show is about finding love, friendship, having a laugh.’ Miss Whitmore made clear that the show, which has been criticised after the suicides of two former contestants, was not ‘the problem’.
‘The show is loving and caring and safe and protected. The problem is the outside world is not.’
She added: ‘To the Press who demonise and tear down success, we’ve had enough. To paparazzi and tabloids looking for a cheap sell, to trolls hiding behind a keyboard, enough.
‘So listeners, be kind, only you are responsible for how you treat others.’
Others also paid tribute to the late star. Singer Olly Murs, 35, who presented X Factor with Miss Flack said she was his ‘sister’ and he had not ‘stopped crying’.
Fellow ITV presenters Holly Willoughby, 39, and Phillip Schofield, 57, paid tribute to her on last night’s Dancing On Ice.
A visibly upset Mr Schofield said: ‘We’d like to take a moment to remember Caroline Flack in light of yesterday’s awful news. We wanted to say that our hearts go out to her family and friends.’