Caroline Flack’s boyfriend Lewis Burton has shared an unseen photo of them, four days after the TV presenter sadly took her own life.
After a coroner confirmed Caroline’s cause of death this morning, the 27-year-old shared an old photo of him and Caroline on holiday, alongside a broken heart emoji.
In the photo, the 40-year-old beamed as Lewis cuddled up next to her.
On Sunday, the former tennis player paid tribute to Caroline on Instagram by writing: “My heart is broken we had something so special.”
“I am so lost for words I am in so much pain I miss you so much I know you felt safe with me you always said I don’t think about anything else when I am with you and I was not allowed to be there this time I kept asking and asking.”
“I will be your voice baby I promise I will ask all the questions you wanted and I will get all the answers nothing will bring you back but I will try make you proud everyday.”
“I love you with all my heart ????,” he added.
This morning, Caroline’s family released a heart-breaking unpublished Instagram post the TV presenter wanted to share before she died.
In the unpublished post, Caroline wrote: “For a lot of people, being arrested for common assault is an extreme way to have some sort of spiritual awakening but for me it’s become the normal.”
“I’ve been pressing the snooze button on many stresses in my life – for my whole life. I’ve accepted shame and toxic opinions on my life for over 10 years and yet told myself it’s all part of my job. No complaining.”
“The problem with brushing things under the carpet is …. they are still there and one day someone is going to lift that carpet up and all you are going to feel is shame and embarrassment.”
“On December the 12th 2019 I was arrested for common assault on my boyfriend …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. I am suddenly on a different kind of stage and everyone is watching it happen.”
“I have always taken responsibility for what happened that night. Even on the night. But the truth is …. It was an accident.”
“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,” she continued.
“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 so sorry to my family for what I have brought upon them and for what my friends have had to go through.”
“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. I can’t say anymore than that.”
Her mum Chris shared Caroline’s final words with the Eastern Daily Press, and said: “Carrie sent me this message at the end of January but was told not to post it by advisers but she so wanted to have her little voice heard.”
“So many untruths were out there but this is how she felt and my family and I would like people to read her own words. Carrie was surrounded by love and friends but this was just too much for her.”
Months before her tragic death, Caroline was charged for allegedly assaulting her boyfriend Lewis Burton in December 2019.
The incident forced her to step down from hosting ITV2’s Love Island, and she was temporarily replaced by Irish presenter Laura Whitmore.
It’s believed Caroline took her own life just hours after she was told she would face trial for the alleged assault – despite the fact that Lewis didn’t want to press charges.
The presenter’s management have since slammed the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for pursuing the ‘show trial’, knowing how vulnerable she was.
Caroline was arrested at her home for assault by beating on December 12, 2019, after getting into a row with Lewis in the early hours of the morning.
The 40-year-old appeared in court later that month, and prosecutors accused her of hitting Lewis with a lamp while he slept, over fears he was cheating on her.
Caroline pleaded not guilty to common assault, and was released on bail until her trial in March.
Lewis, 27, also appeared in court to support Caroline, and denied claims that she hit him with a lamp.
Despite this, the judge banned Caroline from having any form of contact with Lewis, but it’s believed the pair were still in a relationship.
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