George Gilbey: friends and family of late Gogglebox star hit fundraising target for TV star's funeral

The friends and family of the late Gogglebox star George Gilbey have smashed their fundraising target for the TV star’s funeral.

The GoFundMe page was set up after Gilbey died at the age of 40 after falling while working on a warehouse roof in Essex in late March. Family friend, Rob Barlow, set up the fundraiser to help with funeral costs in order to give the ex-Celebrity Big Brother contestant a proper goodbye. A date has not yet been set for the funeral.

The fundraiser has now raised £5,542, hitting over its £5,000 target. Rob said: “As a friend of the family, I have been asked on behalf of Linda, George’s mum to set up this go fund me page so we can give George the send off he deserves. I know his passing has come to a shock for a lot of people, he was such a big character in life and is going to be sorely missed by friends, family and all who knew him.

“I think I can safely say we all enjoyed watching him on GoggleBox, Big brother and all his other TV appearance’s. Anything you can donate would be a great help to the family so thank you in advance, all money will go to Linda to pay for his funeral costs and any funds that are left over after will be given to George’s 8 year old daughter Amelie.” Gilbey, who is believed to have been working as a self-employed electrician at the time of his death, was known to viewers for his armchair opinions on the hit Channel 4 show Gogglebox, which he appeared on alongside his mum Linda and step-dad Pete. The Essex family became a fan favourite on the cast, but the family were taken off of the show after he accepted a offer to appear on Celebrity Big Brother. They would return to the series in 2016 to the delight of fans.

In a touching tribute to her son, Linda told the Clacton 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 added that Gilbey has struggled to “get over” the death of step-dad Pete, following his death at the age in 2021 after being diagnosed with terminal bowel cancer. She added: "I have been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and he took it worse than me. He was a mummy's boy.

"George was a real contradiction - he was so funny and so intelligent. A lot of people don't know how intelligent George was. He was smart, which allowed him to be quick-witted, and he was loud and outgoing, but at the same time very sensitive. He helped others, but he struggled himself."

A man was arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter in connection with Gilbey’s death after he fell from height at a warehouse in Shoeburyness near Southend-on-Sea. Essex Police later confirmed that the man has been released from custody under investigation. A forece spokesperson said: "This is a joint investigation with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and our inquiries are ongoing.”