12 August 2023 , 23:27
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X Factor star Lucy Spraggan has paid a touching tribute to late TV presenter Caroline Flack by dedicating a song to her on her new album.
The 32-year-old Tea and Toast singer was a contestants on the axed ITV talent show back in 2012 - when Caroline was host of companion show The Xtra Factor. Tragically, Caroline took her own life in 2020 at the age of 40 and her loss hit Lucy hard.
The singer-songwriter released her seventh album on Friday and includes a track titled Caroline - which she penned in honour of the late presenter. The singer says she was left wondering what more could have been down to help Caroline and prevent her tragic passing.
Lucy told Sky News: “I remember hearing that she had died and just being so overwhelmed. I wondered what protocols and what procedures were in place to help somebody who quite clearly needed help at that time.”
Lucy Spraggan has paid tribute to TV star Caroline Flack on her new album (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Caroline took her own life in 2020 (ITV/REX/Shutterstock)In an interview with the Mirror this weekend, Lucy made the pitch for a ‘mental health pension’ be to made available to stars who end up in the spotlight. She argues that she wants to see ongoing access to mental health support to be an industry standard for TV contestants and staff.
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She said: “If the TV companies acknowledge they need to support people going forward, they also need to acknowledge they should support people from the past. And they need to care about producers and crew too, not just contestants.”
She revealed she has had long talks with X Factor boss Simon Cowell on the topic and he is “very supportive”. Lucy said: “My song Caroline was the first one I wrote on the album. I felt really affected by how she felt at the end of her life. The middle repeats her name over and over, which is what I want the song to do, to make sure it stays in all our minds.”
Lucy’s tributes to Caroline follow similar words from Olly Murs - who has vowed to keep his former co-star’s name alive through his own music. The 39-year-old singer co-hosted The Xtra Factor and the main X Factor show with Caroline between 2011 and 2015.
Speaking to an audience in Glasgow in April, Olly dedicated a song to Caroline, and added: “God, I just wish she was here. I thought I would dedicate a song to her at every show for the rest of my career.” He then paid further tribute with an acoustic version of the Neil Diamond classic Sweet Caroline.
He later added: “It’s hard to sing that in front of 12,000 people. I love Caz and it was my way of remembering her legacy, who she was in my life. I always said I don’t want anyone to forget what an amazing person she was.”
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