Former Tottenham Hotspur player Micky Hazard says that a new suicide prevention bench named for late TV personality Caroline Flack would offer people who are dealing with thoughts of ending their own life “more power.”
The 64-year-old former football player is an ambassador for Legend On The Bench, an organization his sister Michelle founded following the suicide of her 23-year-old son Jay.
The nonprofit organization places the lit benches with messages and QR codes providing assistance to individuals in need all throughout the United Kingdom.
The newest bench honors the former Strictly Come Dancing champion, whom Hazard called “a lovely person,” and is situated in London.
He remarked, “Caroline Flack is such a celebrity, such a nice person, and so adored by so many people—both personally and via her numerous TV performances.
It’s going to be really poignant, and it’s quite suitable that her mother will be there to see the unveiling of the bench. She will perform a little.
As a nonprofit dedicated to suicide prevention, it greatly strengthens the message.
We want to convey the important message that someone is always listening and that you should speak out since doing so might save your life.
“Therefore, we believe that by dubbed the Caroline Flack bench, it gains a great deal of momentum, more people will hear it, and more lives will be saved.”
On Friday, September 27, the Tottenham Community Sports Centre will host the unveiling of the bench honoring Flack. Osvaldo Ardiles, a former World Cup champion and charity ambassador, is scheduled to attend.
After an incident with her boyfriend, Lewis Burton, in December 2019, Flack, who was born in London and raised in Norfolk, committed suicide in February 2020 at the age of 40. According to Hazard, Flack was the “perfect” person to demonstrate that suicidal thoughts are not “something that just happens to people who are not successful or struggling to achieve.” The former football player said, “It’s very poignant, very touching, but also the message it sends is that suicide isn’t something that just happens to people who are not successful, or struggling to achieve, it can happen to some of the biggest stars in the world”.
Therefore, the message it conveys is excellent.
“She was a much-loved character as well, and obviously there will be a QR code we put on there in memory of Caroline, that will show pictures and videos of her life.
“So, people who sit on the bench and are thinking about suicide can link into this QR code and see this wonderful person’s life.”
Since beginning in October 2023, the charity has built eight suicide prevention benches in the country and already has approval for eight more.
By the end of the year the charity is hoping to have 40 benches in parks and on bridges across the country.
Prior to her death, Flack presented shows including The X Factor, Love Island and Big Brother’s Big Mouth, after beginning her career on the sketch show Bo Selecta!.
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