Laura Whitmore has shared the supportive final messages she exchanged with Caroline Flack before she died.
The former Love Island presenter was found dead in February 2020 at the age of 40. Her death prompted a renewed debate around press intrusion in celebrities’ lives and the impact of negative coverage on their mental health.
Whitmore, 39, who took over the role of Love Island host from Flack until she was replaced by Maya Jama in 2023, posted screenshots of their WhatsApp chat to Instagram after rediscovering the conversation.
The messages, sent in the weeks before Flack’s death, surrounded conversations Whitmore had with ITV producers about her taking over the Love Island role.
Following allegations that she assaulted her boyfriend Lewis Burton, the star had stepped down from presenting the winter series of ITV’s Love Island and was due to appear in court the month after her death.
Flack, saved as “Flacky’ in Whitmore’s phone, said she wanted Whitmore to be the one to host the reality dating series instead of her. “’I hope you are doing the job... I wouldn’t want it to be anyone else,” she wrote.
After it was confirmed Whitmore would be the new host of Love Island, she shared the news with Flack and promised she would “do my very best to give it the justice it deserves”.
Flack then replied with a red heart emoji, adding: “I’m glad it’s you.”
In a caption alongside the screenshots, Whitmore praised the way Flack had supported her and revealed it had emotionally affected her rediscovering the exchange.
“I got a new phone this month and as I was trying to download WhatsApp messages from my cloud loads of old messages came up,” she explained.
“Ones I thought I lost a few years ago and no longer had. It really hit me hard.”
“Looking at messages I’ve never publicly shared as they were private messages,” she continued. “I think they show a side to Caroline which is nice to remember. Hence I’m sharing now.
“She wasn’t perfect and I didn’t know her as well as others but I knew she had her demons. I met Caroline in 2011 when I took over from her hosting I’m a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here Now.
“She was as supportive of me doing that role back then as she was when she supported me doing Love Island in 2020. Both were great shows with hundreds of people working on them and relying on the show going ahead.”
She added: “I will always be so thankful of the last messages between me and Caroline. I never asked her about the court case - it wasn’t my business. I didn’t know her partner at the time and still don’t.”
Whitmore then revealed she won’t appear in the forthcoming Disney+ documentary about Flack, which will follow the star’s mother as she tries to understand events in the final months of her daughter’s life.
“Every time I’ve been asked to speak about the situation or be part of a documentary I decline,” Whitmore said.
“I’ve already said all I can say on the tragedy and don’t want words to be misconstrued and need to look after my own mental health. This was the last correspondence I ever had with her.
“I really did hope she was somewhere lovely. A spa/retreat/rehab. I never knew the extent of her struggles or what was to come.
“The last message from her to me were love hearts,” she added. I’d like to think wherever she is now, she’s at peace and somewhere lovely like I hoped. Today I choose to remember these messages and thank the cloud for giving them back to me.”
If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.
