It has been over six months since Stuart Lubbock was found floating face down in his swimming pool, and now Michael Barrymore has finally broken his silence over the tragedy. In an interview with Martin Bashir to be shown on ITV tomorrow night, the popular TV entertainer admitted he ran away from the scene of the crime after the meat worker’s lifeless body was discovered.
“I saw the dead body and felt sick,” Michael told the journalist. “My friend John called the ambulance and police. I’m ashamed to say I panicked and ran away to stay with a friend in the village. I accept my share of blame for what happened in my house, of course I do, but I struggle every day to come to terms with it. When I think about Stuart’s family, they are the real victims.”
The 49-year-old comedian evidently found the questioning difficult and at times was close to tears during the interview. But there were moments when Michael seemed to be using Martin’s probing as a confessional. “I’m an addict and an alcoholic,” he admitted. "For the first time in my life I can honestly say that I am beginning to face up to that. I’d rather die than come off the wagon again. In my present state I’m not suicidal but I have contemplated it since the night. That’s why I know if I relapse again I don’t want to carry on."
Michael, the winner of countless TV awards, recounted his version of the events that led to the 31-year-old’s death. “I met a group of people as I was leaving a club at about 2.30am, and I invited them back for a drink,” recalled the presenter. “We were chatting in the kitchen when John came in. He asked me: ‘Who are these people? You’ve invited these people back to the house and you don’t even know who they are.’”
The star also told the reporter, who sprung to prominence after he interviewed the Princess of Wales for the Panorama programme, that despite being married to former wife Cheryl for 22 years, he has never felt deeply for anyone. “I’m not proud of myself for saying this but I don’t think I’ve ever loved anybody,” said Michael. “Isn’t that a terrible thing to contemplate? But I don’t think I ever have. Perhaps I never will.”
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
