Steve Coogan has shared an emotional tribute to his co-star Caroline Flack after she devastatingly took her own life last weekend in a shocking tragedy.
The comedian, 54, spoke for the first time as the late Love Island host makes a posthumous appearance in his new film Greed.
Caroline, who was found dead last Saturday aged 40, at her new London flat, is seen in the feature trailer saying: “Now it’s time for the man you’ve all been waiting for… the king of the high street.”
Speaking on BBC Breakfast today, Coogan said Caroline’s death was tragic and insisted it has raised “lots of issues” around social media and the press.
Steve Coogan has shared an emotional tribute to his co-star Caroline Flack after she took her own life last weekend (Image: BBC)
Steve spoke about the heartbreaking news of Caroline’s death, saying: “It was awful. Obviously my heart goes out to her loved ones and her family.
“It’s tragic. There are lots of issues that are raised by it.
“I am sure you have talked about that – to do with social media, to do with the press, to do with the discourse that takes place specifically on social media, and also to do with the way the press behave.”
The comedian, 54, spoke for the first time as the late Love Island host makes a posthumous appearance in new film Greed (Image: BBC)
Coogan also insisted social media was partly to blame as he described how trolls cannot see “the whites of the eyes of the person they are talking too”.
The Alan Partridge star added: “But I don’t particularly want to use what is a tragic death and a tragic occurrence to make political capital out of it. I certainly think that, really, the problem with social media is that people don’t see the whites of the eyes of the person they are talking to, so they behave in quite a reprehensible way.
“You can wax lyrical about it all but I just think people need to step back and question how they behave, question how they talk to each other.”
Caroline who was found dead at her new London flat, is seen in the trailer saying: “Now it’s time for the man you’ve all been waiting for… the king of the high street” (Image: ITV)
Steve plays a retail tycoon inspired by Topshop magnate Sir Philip Green in the new film .
The comedian added that instead of being ‘sucked into a social media vortex’ he tried to express himself through his films and TV shows.
Coogan also encouraged people to consider that their views might not be “watertight” and described holding views with “absolute certainty” as “dangerous”.
The comedian added that instead of being ‘sucked into a social media vortex’ he tried to express himself through his films (Image: BBC)
Steve’s emotional tribute comes just days after an inquest opened at Popular Coroners’ Court surrounding the 40-year-old’s death.
The small screen star was found dead at her home in Stoke Newington on Saturday 15 February after taking her own life.
The court adjourned the full hearing until August 5.
Steve’s tribute comes just days after an inquest opened at Popular Coroners’ Court surrounding the star’s death (Image: Mike Marsland/WireImage)
A spokesperson for the Flack family confirmed the sad news of her death last Saturday, stating: “We can confirm that our Caroline passed away today on the 15th February.”
They added: “We would ask that the press respect the privacy of the family at this difficult time.”
For emotional support, you can call the Samaritans 24-hour helpline on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org, visit a Samaritans branch in person or go to the Samaritans website.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
