Reality TV Mom 'Devastated' After Her Son's Death: Linda McGarry Breaks Silence on George Gilbey
Linda McGarry and George Gilbey were both on 'Gogglebox.'
Update, April 7, 10:55 a.m. ET: Linda McGarry has spoken out after the death of her son and Gogglebox co-star George Gilbey, who died in a workplace incident on March 27. She told the Thurrock Gazette, "I'm devastated – he was like my best friend. He had the best heart in the world – he was generous, funny and kind, with bundles of charm and buckets of personality. He did more in his 40 years than people do in 90 – he's even had dinner with the Prince of Dubai.
"He was crazy, but after coming out of showbiz, he couldn't get his life back together. He just couldn't get over the death of Pete (McGarry, his stepfather). I have been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and he took it worse than me. He was a mummy's boy."
She added, "He came to celebrity over night but didn't really want to be – he was just normal. "But it allowed him to do charity work – anytime anyone contacted him about charity work, he prioritised it."
The investigation into Gilbey's death at the EGL Homecare's warehouse in Shoebury, Essex, is still underway. The suspect in the matter, an unnamed male in his 40s, has been released from custody as authorities continue to determine what happened to Gilbey and if anyone is responsible.
Original Story, March 30, 12:35 p.m. ET: A beloved reality TV personality is dead after a terrifying workplace incident, according to The Sun. George Gilbey, best known for Gogglebox and Celebrity Big Brother, died while working at his day job on Wednesday when he suffered a fall from 80 feet. He was 40.
Gilbey, who famously starred on Gogglebox alongside his mother Linda and now-deceased stepfather Pete McGarry, was working at EGL Homecare's warehouse in Shoebury, Essex, when he died. For unclear reasons, he was working on the warehouse's roof without a harness. Tragedy soon followed, according to one of Gilbey's friends who spoke anonymously to The Sun.
"George had not been in a good way and maybe should not have been working at all. He was up on the roof and the others were shouting at him to get down and to be careful," the friend claimed. "He was shouting back that he was all right, even though he was not very steady on his feet. Then, he apparently came through a skylight so fell from the outside of the roof about 80ft on to concrete inside. Poor George did not stand a chance and it is a terrible way to go."
It might seem like a freak accident on the surface, but police are investigating the matter. In fact, they have arrested a man at the worksite for "suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter." A name was not publicized, only that the suspect in question is in his 40s and hails from Witham, Essex.
Linda has spoken out about her son's death via Ricci Guarnaccio, a close friend of Gilbey's from his time on Celebrity Big Brother: "Linda wants to say a huge thank you to everyone who has sent condolences. She just wants everyone to remember him for who he was. She's obviously hurt at the minute but it's hugely appreciated."
He added, "For the family, for Linda, she really, really wants everyone to know she's taken back. And she's getting shown a lot of the messages that's come through because she doesn't really deal with Twitter and stuff. All the messages that people have been saying – all the stories, all the good times that George's has brought to their lives, and all the funny memories they've got from Gogglebox and Big Brother – it does mean a lot to her. So if people could keep doing that, it would be appreciated."