The family of tragic Strictly Come Dancing star Robin Windsor today thanked mourners for the ‘outpouring of love’ following his shock death aged 44.
The professional Latin and Ballroom dancer, who delighted millions when he appeared on the hit BBC show between 2010 and 2015, vanished last week before his body was found in a London hotel on Monday.
While the cause of Robin’s death has yet to be confirmed, his close friend and former Strictly co-star Kristina Rihanoff hinted that he may have taken his own life.
Tributes have flooded in for Windsor, who paired with celebrities including model Patsy Kensit, actresses Anita Dobson and Lisa Riley, and Dragons’ Den star Deborah Meaden on Strictly. He also danced with Great British Bake Off host Alison Hammond in the 2015 Christmas special and with Susanna Reid in 2011’s Children In Need special.
In a statement today, Windsor’s family said: ‘We would like to thank everyone for the outpouring of love and celebration of our beloved Robin.
‘While we understand that there is a huge public and media interest around his passing, we as a family need time to process our shock and grief. We ask for the needs of our family and friends to be taken into consideration and for our privacy to be respected at this difficult time.’
They added: ‘As we have further information we will share a statement in due course.’
Kristina said: ‘There are no words to express the pain. Robin wasn’t just my dance partner, he was a friend and together we shared endless experiences from our career highlights to hitting rock bottom of rejection.
‘Many of you, who went to see his farewell tour, know perfectly well that he spoke very openly about his mental health struggles and thoughts of suicide. I’m sure it was devastating for anyone who loves Robin to hear that, but those thoughts were in his head for many years… Too much pain, too much disappointment, too much neglect.’
Robin had opened up on his struggles with mental health before his death in a video for SANE, a charity he was an ambassador for, with volunteers from the charity.
He explained: ‘Once I spoke to someone who completely listened, they didn’t really have to give me advice, they just had to listen and I could see that they wanted me to be better. It’s picking the right person to speak to.’
Sharing the video, SANE paid tribute to Robin’s memory, writing: ‘We were very distressed to learn of the death of Robin Windsor, one of SANE’s most vigorous and loyal ambassadors.