'You were everything I wanted to be and more': Sophie Gradon's sister mourns her tragic death
While fans and followers are still reeling over the shocking death of Love Island's Sophie Gordon, her heartbroken sister has taken to social media to mourn the death of the 32-year-old reality TV star. In a sweet Instagram post, the grieving sister of Gradon, Charlotte Martin, opened up about her loss sharing a childhood photo of herself and her sister.
"I love you so much," she said in the tribute post. "You will never know how much I idolised you and the ground you walked on. Growing up I was always so immensely excited to see you and that never stopped."
Charlotte continued: "I'd copy your outfits growing up just to be an ounce as cool as you and talk about you nonstop. You were everything I wanted to be and more, the most caring and hilarious person I knew. The beacon of any room you entered. I will remember your smile and laugh forever. My soapy soap suds."
Sophie is said to have died on Tuesday. On Friday, Mirror Online reported that Sophie's body had been found by her boyfriend, Aaron Armstrong, at her parents' home in Medburn, Northumberland, while her parents were away holidaying. Sophie was house sitting for her mum and dad.
The cause of her death is still being speculated and it is still unknown whether it is a suicide or not. A friend close to Sophie has come out since the incident saying she gave no sign of being depressed when the two had met. In fact, she appeared to be in "good spirits", even though she had spoken out about online bullies just the week prior to her death.
The friend also shared that Sophie's parents are "understandably devastated", especially considering the changes she had been making about her life in general. "Sophie had wanted to settle down and was growing sick of the party lifestyle," the friend added.
Financial problems were on her list of woes, however, as revealed by her friend, reported Mirror. Recently, Sophie had also suffered the tragic loss of her close friend Paul Burns whose funeral she attended a week before her death.
Post the tragic news of Sophie's suspected suicide broke out, Love Island, the show where she had appeared back in 2016, dedicated its Thursday episode to its late star, paying her a tribute at the beginning of the episode. They showcased a smiling picture of Sophie on the screen, above which were the words: "In loving memory of Sophie Gradon."
A statement from the broadcaster read: "The whole ITV2 and Love Island team are profoundly saddened to hear the news about Sophie, and our deepest sympathies and thoughts go to her family and friends."