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George Gilbey: Second man arrested over Gogglebox star's death

PA Media George Gilbey smilingPA Media
George Gilbey, from Clacton-on-Sea, was working as an electrician when he "fell from height"

A second man has been arrested in connection with the death of Gogglebox star George Gilbey.

The self-employed electrician, 40, was working in Shoeburyness, Essex, on 27 March, when he fell through a skylight.

Essex Police said a man, 36, from Witham, had been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.

A 47-year-old man, also from Witham, who was held over the same offence, has since been released under investigation, the force said.

The second arrested man was still in custody, officers said.

The force added that a joint investigation with the Health and Safety Executive remained ongoing.

Lewis Adams/BBC A bouquet of flowers outside an industrial siteLewis Adams/BBC
Flowers could be seen at the gates to EGL Homecare, in Shoeburyness, on the morning after Gilbey's death

A short inquest hearing earlier this month was told Gilbey's injuries were "consistent with a fall from height".

Coroner's officer, Deborah Frost, said: "[Gilbey] was working on a roof when he fell through a plastic skylight and landed on the ground below".

Gilbey, from Clacton-on-Sea, was one of the early regulars on the Channel 4 reality show Gogglebox, where families sitting in their living rooms were filmed reacting to television programmes.

He appeared on the show with his family between 2013 and 2018, and on Celebrity Big Brother in 2014.

Channel 4 George Gilbey, his mother Linda and late stepfather Pete, sitting on a black sofaChannel 4
George Gilbey, his mother Linda and late stepfather, Pete, were fixtures on the Channel 4 show between 2013 and 2018

Speaking to the Clacton Gazette, Gilbey's mother Linda McGarry said her son "did more in his 40 years than people do in 90".

"He had the best heart in the world - he was generous, funny and kind, with bundles of charm and buckets of personality," she said, also describing him as a "devoted father".

Ms McGarry appeared on the Gogglebox sofa along with Gilbey's stepfather Pete McGarry, who died in 2021 after a short illness.

Within two weeks of Gilbey's death, more than £3,000 had been raised online to help support his family.

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