'I don't remember it' - Laura Whitmore opens up about hosting Love Island after Caroline Flack death

TV host Laura Whitmore has said she will “never understand” Caroline Flack’s death – as she admits she doesn’t remember hosting the show in the wake of the tragedy.

And the former MTV star said she has learned to cope with her emotions publicly over the years and remain professional despite turmoil in her personal life.

Speaking to host Doireann Garrihy on the Laughs of her Life podcast, she began by saying: “I think sometimes things are bigger than you.

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“There have been situations my whole life where no one will have a clue. There’s been ones where people do know what’s going on.

“There have been personal things… heartbreaks where I’ve gone through massive break ups and done live telly, someone will say ‘you look great’.

“I’m like ‘thanks I haven’t eaten in two weeks’ because I’m depressed,” she said jokingly.

In December 2019, Whitmore replaced Flack as presenter on the hugely popular ITV2 reality show, Love Island, after Flack stood down following an assault charge.

Weeks later she took her own life at aged 40 in February 2020.

Commenting on presenting the show at the time, mum-of-one Laura said her hands “were shaken” when she had to step in.

“I’ve done shows… when we lost Caroline and the world is looking at you and that show is bigger than me and I’m doing it for everyone else.

“But f*****g hell, my hands are shaken doing that. I think sometimes I go into autopilot. Like I can’ deal with this emotion now so we’re going to put it in a box, which isn't very good probably for your mental health and I’ll deal with it at some point down the line.

“But you have to at some point deal with it because it does catch up with you.

“But some things are bigger than you and just kind of have to do it, not for you but for other people.”

She said she doesn’t remember hosting the South African version of the show.

“I don’t remember it. I think some things I just forget happened. I do feel like I was in a bubble of safety.

“For the Love Island final, and obviously I had just taken over that show temporarily and there was stuff going on and it wasn’t my business.

“I assumed it was going to be similar to what Holly (Willoughby) did for Ant (McPartlin).

“I’m in the middle of everything and I have paps outside my house and I’m like this isn’t even my story to comment on and then the worst thing in the world happened, which I will probably never fully comprehend.

“I think when I did that show I was in South Africa and I was in a bubble and I think I was quite protected. I wasn’t in my house because there were paps at my house so I was in my bubble, did the show, went back to the hotel.

“I don’t really remember that other than to get to the end, be professional and respectful as much as possible and then we had a private funeral, where I didn’t have to deal with it in front of the world nor should I have to.”

“It’s not my story to comment on because I’ll never fully know where Caroline was and I wish I did. I’ll never comprehend where her head was. I’ll never understand it,” she added.

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