Caroline Flack’s mother calls out Graham Norton and Lorraine Kelly for hurtful jokes about late star’s troubles
Caroline Flack at The BRIT Awards 2018 in London, England. (Antony Jones/Getty Images)
Caroline Flack’s mother has called out Graham Norton and Lorraine Kelly for their hurtful jokes about the star’s difficulties in the months leading up to her death.
The ITV presenter died by suicide in February 2020 just weeks before she was due to face trial over allegations she had assaulted her boyfriend Lewis Burton, which she denied.
The scandal saw her vilified in the media as she was dropped from Love Island, which she had hosted for four years.
In an upcoming Channel 4 documentary, Caroline Flack: Her Life and Death, Flack’s mother Christine reflected on how her daughter’s misfortune was viewed as a joke.
In particular she singles out Lorraine Kelly, who is shown laughing uncontrollably as she discusses Flack’s replacement.
“As Caroline Flack steps down from Love Island, we’re finding out who’s going to replace her,” she told viewers. “That’s showbiz!”
Christine was horrified to hear this lack of sympathy from her daughter’s peers in the entertainment industry.
“Just to laugh when it was the worst time in Carrie’s life and say, ‘That’s showbusiness.’ It should not be showbusiness,” Christine said.
She also condemns Graham Norton for a 2016 joke about Flack and Olly Murs being replaced as the hosts of The X Factor.
“I’m not saying the writing was on the wall for Caroline Flack,” Graham said. “But you could get better odds of Anne Boleyn returning for the second series of Wolf Hall.”
“That really hurt her,” Christine explained. “I knew that was going to make her feel so bad. And that’s when I worried about her.”
During the hour-long documentary, Caroline’s family explain they “begged her to quit showbiz” as they were well aware of her battle with mental health.
Her twin sister Jody said: “I would beg her to change jobs and leave showbiz but she never would, life would have been easier but she wasn’t built for an easy life.
“She was always scared she’d be ridiculed, she was terrified to admit her mental health struggles.”
The harrowing documentary airs on Channel 4 on Wednesday, 17 March. PinkNews has contacted representatives of Kelly and Norton for comment.
Suicide is preventable. Readers who are affected by the issues raised in this story are encouraged to contact Samaritans on 116 123 (www.samaritans.org), or Mind on 0300 123 3393 (www.mind.org.uk). Readers in the US are encouraged to contact the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255.
