Heartbroken BBC radio presenter Lauren Laverne reveals her mother has passed away and pulls out of BBC Glastonbury coverage
- Lauren was at Glastonbury Festival in Somerset when she discovered the news
- The presenter had been covering the festival for BBC Radio 6 at the the time
- Lauren shared her ‘utter heartbreak’ in an an emotional Instagram post
- Lauren told how her mother Celia Gofton had been ‘looking forward to watching Paul McCartney headline the festival on Saturday night
Lauren Laverne has paid a heartbreaking tribute to her mum Celia Gofton after she suddenly died while the radio host was presenting at Glastonbury Festival.
The 44-year-old radio breakfast show presenter, who is covering the Somerset festival for the BBC, honoured her mum with an emotional Instagram post.
The DJ shared a sweet message about how Celia was the ‘most compassionate and most tenacious person I have ever met’ as she shared her ‘utter heartbreak’.
So sad: Lauren Laverne has paid a heartbreaking tribute to her mum Celia Gofton after she suddenly died while the radio host was presenting at Glastonbury Festival
Lauren started her post on Instagram: ‘Yesterday I lost my Mam, Celia. She was the kindest, most compassionate and most tenacious person I have ever met. Born in the middle of nine kids, she was a master peacemaker and persuader.’
She went on in the length post to detail her mother’s life from school to being cared for at UCLH.
Lauren explained: ‘She passed her 11+ and went to grammar school which changed our family’s direction forever. Met my Dad at 16 and loved him every day of her life.
‘Utterly heartbroken’: The 44-year-old radio breakfast show host, who is covering the Somerset festival for the BBC, shared a sweet snap of her and mum on Instagram (pictured earlier this week)
Throwback: The DJ shared a sweet message about how Celia was the ‘most compassionate and most tenacious person I have ever met’
‘She ran the only reggae club night in the NE and told me that being young in the 60s felt like that line in Mr Tambourine Man “to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand waving free”.’
‘She worked as a seamstress and a casino dancer (also making costumes for the troupe) to pay her way through college and became a wonderful teacher, eventually managing all Sunderland’s colleges.
‘Somewhere along the line she had me and my brother and got political (she once chased someone from the BNP down our garden path with a rolling pin in one hand and me in the other arm) protested at Greenham Common and eventually became a city councillor.
Happier times: The TV star shared a gallery of snaps of herself and Celia beaming in selfies alongside the heartbreaking message
‘She delighted in helping people, especially those who like her knew what it was like to grow up without.
The BBC star continued: ‘She had watched so many decades of history documentaries that when we met historian Michael Wood they chatted away like colleagues.
‘She loved children and was the most devoted and adored mother and grandmother you could ever meet. But she also knew that mother is a verb as well as a noun and mothered so many others along the way who needed love and support throughout her life.’
Thanking everyone: She went on in the length post to detail her mothers life from school to thanking those that cared for her at UCLH
So sweet: Lauren said her mum Celia had been ‘looking forward to watching Paulie’ (Paul McCartney) on stage tonight before the tragic news
She concluded the post by thanking the ‘team at UCHL who cared’ for her mum and her family at the end of her life.
Lauren wrote: ‘She made connections wherever she went including with the incredible teams at UCLH who cared for her – and us – at the end of her life. Thank you to them for everything.
‘We are all utterly heartbroken to lose her. She had just given the kids their Glastonbury spending money and was looking forward to watching Paulie (as he was always known in our house – her favourite Beatle) tonight.
Festival: The presenter had been at the festival at the time when the news broke
‘She’d been a fan ever since she saw him at the Sunderland Empire in 1963 (and later met him later with me – he was just lovely to her).
‘Mam, I love you forever. Thank you for my fantastic life. I have no idea what I’m going to do without you, but I’m going to try to make it interesting and you will be in my heart, always XXX.’
Several famous faces rushed to the comment section of the post to share their condolences including The One Show’s Alex Jones, Davina McCall, Claudia Winkleman, Myleene Klass and many more.
Lauren shot to fame as the lead singer and guitarist in the rock band Kenickie in the 90s.
The band consisted of Lauren, her brother Pete – AKA Johnny X – Marie du Santiago and Emmy-Kate Montrose.
Since switching to presenting, she is known for her work on The One Show and BBC Radio 6.
Amazing: Several famous faces rushed to the comment section of the post to share their condolences including The One Show’s Alex Jones, Davina McCall, Claudia Winkleman, Myleen Klass and many more
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