'Love Island' finale pays tribute to late host Caroline Flack a week after her death by suicide

Love Island kicked off its finale episode on Sunday with an emotional tribute to Caroline Flack, who hosted the U.K. reality show from 2015 to 2019. Flack, 40, died by suicide on Feb. 15.

Laura Whitmore, who replaced Flack as the show’s host following her arrest for an alleged assault on boyfriend Lewis Burton last December, introduced the episode dedicated in Flack’s memory.

“The past week has been extremely difficult coming to terms with the loss of our friend and colleague Caroline,” Whitmore told viewers, her voice thick with emotion. “We’re thinking of her family and everyone who knew her at this time. Caroline loved Love Island. She loved love, and that’s why tonight’s final is dedicated to her.”

Whitmore’s somber statement was followed by a more upbeat video montage showcasing Flack’s bubbly persona on the show and its Aftersun spin-off, from her banter with contestants to her famous slow-motion entrances.

The video — soundtracked to Rudimental’s “Feel the Love” — concluded with a photo of Flack and the simple text: “Caroline Louise Flack 1979-2020.”

Love Island previously honored Flack with a voiceover from comedian Iain Stirling, the show’s Scottish narrator. Stirling opened up last Monday’s episode — the first since Flack’s death, after a clip show on Sunday was scrapped — by sharing that he and his colleagues were “absolutely devastated” by her death.

Whitmore — who also happens to be Stirling’s girlfriend — has also spoken of her sadness. Last week the Irish broadcaster choked up as she paid homage to her friend and hit out at social media trolls and the tabloid press.

“She was bubbly, and for such a small stature commanded a room,” Whitmore said of Flack. “She loved to laugh and had the most infectious chuckle.”

Days later, Flack’s family revealed what they say is a post she had intended to share online before being advised against doing so. The post, since published in a British newspaper, addressed the fallout from her December arrest.

“Within 24 hours my whole world and future was swept from under my feet and all the walls that I had taken so long to build around me, collapsed,” she wrote. “I am suddenly on a different kind of stage and everyone is watching it happen.

Related Video: Caroline Flack, Love Island Host, Dies at 40, Ruled a Suicide

“I have always taken responsibility for what happened that night. Even on the night. But the truth is …. It was an accident,” she continued. “I’ve been having some sort of emotional breakdown for a very long time.

“But I am NOT a domestic abuser. We had an argument and an accident happened. An accident. The blood that someone SOLD to a newspaper was MY blood and that was something very sad and very personal.

“The reason I am talking today is because my family can’t take anymore. I’ve lost my job. My home. My ability to speak. And the truth has been taken out of my hands and used as entertainment.

“I can’t spend every day hidden away being told not to say or speak to anyone … I’m not thinking about ‘how I’m going to get my career back.’ I’m thinking about how I’m going to get mine and my family’s life back,” Flack concluded. “I can’t say anymore than that.”

If you or someone you know are experiencing suicidal thoughts, call 911, or call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741.

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