Tributes pour in for Caroline Flack, sparking discussion about mental health

TV presenter Caroline Flack died on Saturday. According to Sky News, her lawyer has revealed that she died by suicide in her East London flat.

The 40-year-old most notably hosted Love Island, whose Sunday episode was cancelled in honour of Flack, and appeared on X Factor as well as many other shows. The tabloid press had targeted her repeatedly following her arrest for an alleged assault against her boyfriend last month.

Friend Laura Whitmore shared an emotional tribute to Flack on her BBC Five Live Show, to "give her the respect that she deserves and that she didn't always get". She added that, "anyone who knew Caroline knew she was vivacious, loving, and had a passion for life, which is why none of this makes sense". Whitmore also discussed the public's scrutiny of Flack and how people need to be nicer to each other on social media.

Laura Whitmore pays emotional tribute to friend #CarolineFlack

Read more tributes here: https://t.co/mgnB5FK3sl
Listen to the full programme via @bbcsounds: https://t.co/TsoKQAsCvT pic.twitter.com/0T7QEIqtU5

— BBC Radio 5 Live (@bbc5live) February 16, 2020

Flack's boyfriend Lewis Burton made a heartfelt post on Instagram, promising to keep making her proud.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Lewis Burton (@mrlewisburton)

RTÉ presenter Angela Scanlon paid tribute via Twitter, also adding that it's far too easy to forget that even celebrities are human.

Devastating news about Caroline. It has become so easy for people to forget or ignore that famous people are humans with hearts who were once children. We are all part of the problem. I hope she’s found her peace and that her family will be given some peace too ❤️

— Angela Scanlon (@angelascanlon) February 15, 2020

Niall Horan Tweeted about Flack with a broken heart emoji before continuing to discuss the unfair way Flack was treated by tabloids.

Caroline 💔

— Niall Horan (@NiallOfficial) February 15, 2020

That’s our actual friend, a person. Because she is talented and famous she automatically gets treated differently by society and in turn the tabloids and social media. The outcome is society’s fault .

— Niall Horan (@NiallOfficial) February 15, 2020

Derry Girls star Nicola Coughlan was devastated, praising Flack for her kind and genuine demeanour.

James Blake also took to Twitter to discuss compassion and empathy while paying tribue to Flack.

#rip Caroline Flack. This is the effect of online and print bullying. This is what dehumanizing and hounding people leads to. As a society we need to find our compassion and empathy. We don’t know what other people are going through as they almost always present an ‘ok’ front.

— James Blake (@jamesblake) February 15, 2020

Liam Gallagher dedicated a song to Flack during his Milan performance on Sunday, February 16.

Actor and comedian Miranda Hart posted a long tribute on Twitter, saying she felt like she was "going to be sick" when she heard the news and jumping into a discussion about celebrities' vulnerabilities.

#ripcarolineflack pic.twitter.com/cxDC5CCTYk

— Miranda Hart (@mermhart) February 15, 2020