holly© Photo: ITV

Holly Willoughby pays touching tribute to Tara Palmer-Tomkinson as she discusses their close friendship

Deputy Online Editor
February 9, 2017

Holly Willoughby has paid a loving tribute to Tara Palmer-Tomkinson, who passed away in her London flat aged 45, on Wednesday. Taking to her social media pages, the daytime television presenter shared a picture of the pair of them as she touched upon her late friend's kindness. In the caption, she wrote, "Will miss your kindness, beautiful lady," alongside a broken-heart emoji.

On Thursday's This Morning, Holly talked about her friendship with Tara, telling co-host Phillip Schofield. "She had an incredible energy. I was lucky enough to know her and she was very good friends with a close friend of mine and she just had that special energy about her. She was just so funny, she was a funny girl and incredibly kind. I always remember that she was very generous with her time but with her spirit also."

© Photo: ITV

Holly Willoughby has paid a loving tribute to close friend Tara Palmer-Tomkinson

The London socialite, who was good friends with Prince Charles, passed away at her London home just three months after she had revealed that she was battling a brain tumour. Discussing how they first met, the mother-of-three revealed Tara had given her an extravagant gift. She continued: "The first time I met her, and I think this sums up that 'child like' character and fun that she had… I was having dinner and she came over to my table and said 'you know a very good friend of mine' and we started chatting and chatting and chatting and as she's talking to me.

"She was gesticulating with her hands and I noticed this diamond bling, gorgeous ring - and I'm like watching her hand like a magpie and said 'your ring is beautiful', and she said 'oh this, this is just a bit of toot from Chanel' and she dropped it in my champagne class and went 'it's yours!' I said 'no, I can't take that!' and she replied, 'if you don't take it, I'll throw it across the restaurant'. So the next morning I wake up and I had this incredible ring on my hand, which I did say to her the next morning 'I've got your ring' and she said 'I don't want it back.'"

© Photo: ITV

"She had an incredible energy," the presenter said of the late star

Exclusive: Tara on life, loves and why she's a kid at heart

Holly also recalled another time when Tara helped her get ready for an event after the birth of her second baby. Revealing how the late television star swiftly came to her aid, Holly said: "After I had Belle, and again, this was just her kind way, and I'd just had Bella two months beforehand and had this event to go to and I was feeling quite big and dumpy because I was still breastfeeding and I was massive - and bearing in mind she was a size 6 and I was about a size 16 to 20 by that point, she said, 'Come back to mine,' and we went into her wardrobe.

© Photo: Getty Images

Tara Palmer-Tomkinson passed away in her London flat aged 45

Prince Charles and Camilla lead tributes to Tara

"She must've spent hours with me trying on all of her clothes and she fully kitted me out in heels, she gave me her handbag, she dressed me up and sent me off on my way to this party. [Looking at the image] That's me wearing her clothes! It was a little black number - it was very stretchy I might add! But she was a real girl's girl. She was a lovely person."

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