‘They don’t protect anyone’: Caroline Flack’s mum Christine slams social media firms ahead of documentary about tragic Love Island star
- If you have been affected by this story, you can call the Samaritans on 116 123 or visit www.samaritans.org
Caroline Flack’s mother has slammed social media firms, saying they ‘don’t protect anyone’ ahead of a documentary about her daughter’s tragic death.
Christine, 70, reflected on trolling her daughter faced and said bullying now ‘follows you home on your phone’ in a candid interview, according to The Mirror.
The Love Island presenter died from suicide on 15 February 2020 at the age of 40, with show Caroline Flack: Her Life And Death set to air on Channel 4 on Wednesday.
Family: Caroline Flack’s mother Christine has slammed social media firms, saying they ‘don’t protect anyone’ ahead of a documentary about her daughter’s tragic death
Speaking candidly, Christine said that you could escape bullies in the past, however that’s all changed now in the age of social media.
She said: ‘You can’t get away from it now because it follows you home, it follows you on your phone.’
And speaking about social media companies. the grieving mother said: ‘It is not that there’s a lack of money. They don’t protect anyone.’
Tragic: The Love Island presenter died from suicide on 15 February 2020 at the age of 40
Before Caroline passed, she endured an onslaught of trolling on social media from tweeters that branded her an ‘abuser’ and said she deserved to be sacked from Love Island after she was charged with attacking boyfriend Lewis Burton, 28.
Christine previously revealed she feels more needs to be done from social media platforms to protect users from trolls after Caroline became ‘addicted’ to reading often-hateful comments about herself online.
She said: ‘Carrie was the worst one, she would look at her phone all the time. It took her over. There could be 30 nice things said but one bad thing and that was it.’
Christine also hit out at Lorraine Kelly and Graham Norton for making ‘hurtful’ jokes after Caroline’s stint on The X Factor came to an end, during the documentary.
In 2015 Caroline and Olly Murs replaced Dermot O’Leary for a season of the ITV show, however they were highly criticised by viewers online.
Trolling: Speaking on the upcoming documentary, Christine said that you could escape bullies in the past however that’s all changed now in the age of social media
Grieving mum Christine chatted about how Graham Norton made a joke about Caroline’s exit from her The X Factor presenting gig at the BAFTAs.
She said: ‘That just really, really hurt her. You thought, ‘Oh, that’s going to make her feel so, so bad. That’s when you were again worried about her’.’
According to The Mirror, Graham had said: ‘Dermot is back on the X Factor, well done Dermot! I’m not saying the writing was on the wall for Caroline Flack, but you could get better odds of Anne Boleynn returning for the second series at Wolf Hall.’
MailOnline has contacted representatives for Graham and Lorraine for a comment.
Tough times: Christine also hit out at Lorraine Kelly and Graham Norton for making ‘hurtful’ jokes after Caroline’s stint on The X Factor came to an end (pictured with co-host Olly Murs)
Olly reflected on the criticism in the upcoming documentary saying they ‘got it from all angles’ and were constantly hit with cruel comments for 10 weeks.
The singer said the abuse Caroline was reading was ‘awful’, with her agent Polly also revealing that the late star couldn’t stop herself from reading the messages.
Elsewhere in the upcoming show Caroline’s family revealed they always feared the Love Island host would take her own life, 13 months after her suicide.
In a documentary, Caroline Flack: Her Life and Death, the late TV presenter’s mum Christine and twin sister Jody, 41, tell how she was always ‘fascinated’ by suicide and previously tried to kill herself following a relationship breakup before she found fame.
And in a bid to encourage her fans to open up about mental health, they revealed Caroline attempted to hide her own problems – she had battled depression since becoming a teenager – because she was ‘frightened’ of the public’s reaction and how it might impact her career.
Struggles: The star’s mother has previously said that Caroline became ‘addicted’ to reading often-hateful comments about herself online (pictured in a trailer for the new documentary)
Christine said: ‘She had a long relationship when she was in Cambridge but that ended and then we got a call, she’d taken some pills, she spent time in hospital and then you could tell it wasn’t right, her reaction wasn’t right. Yeah, she didn’t handle heartbreak well.
‘We went through all the doctors and they saw to her and thought no it’s just a one off but there was always that fear after then that… I don’t know, you always worried in case anything happened.’
Jody added: ‘It feels so weird talking about it because I know it’s something she never wanted anybody to know about.
‘Each serious boyfriend, she sort of took a lot of tablets, drank a lot, and ended up in an A&E situation a lot of times. She really didn’t think she could cope with that feeling so it was her trying to control it.’
‘You always worried’: In a new C4 documentary, Caroline Flack: Her Life and Death, the late TV star’s mum Christine and twin sister Jody tell how she was always ‘fascinated’ by suicide
Her family hope the film – which airs on Wednesday, March 17 – will give Caroline’s fans the confidence to talk about their problems and break down the stigma still attached to depression.
They believe if the former X Factor host had opened up about her illness, she may still be here today. Christine explained: ‘She hated the thought of people thinking she was this awful person.
‘Even when she’d taken pills as a young person, she didn’t want anyone to know, she didn’t want anyone to know she got down and I know they say everyone’s talking about it now but I think a lot of people that really suffer with depression still don’t talk about it, they don’t. I think people are still frightened to say it.’
Caroline Flack: Her Life And Death, on Wednesday, Channel 4, at 9pm.
If you have been affected by this story, you can call the Samaritans on 116 123 or visit www.samaritans.org
‘She didn’t want anyone to know’: Christine and Jody believe if the former X Factor host had opened up about her illness, she may still be here today (Caroline pictured in 2019)
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