Lisa Riley offered to pay for Robin Windsor's therapy
Lisa Riley has revealed she desperately tried to help her former Strictly Come Dancing partner Robin Windsor prior to his death - offering to pay for him to have therapy as he slipped into a depression after losing his job on the show.
Lisa Riley offered to pay for Robin Windsor's therapy as he spiralled into a deep depression after losing his job on Strictly Come Dancing.
The 49-year-old actress was paired up with the professional dancer during her run on the BBC talent show back in 2012 and they forged a close friendship which continued long after the cameras stopped rolling. Robin took his own life in 2024 and Lisa has now revealed she desperately tried to help her friend during his darkest months.
During an appearance on ITV show Loose Women, Lisa said: "The trust and loyalty that I had with that man in this industry. It's so hard. I've always had trust issues but with him, he was there for me if it was 10 past three in the morning. And same. Vice versa.
"I would know that he would pick that phone up ... It was a friendship like no other. And I said at his funeral, why would he not want to be here any more?
"And with suicide, it's so hard because you don't understand why they're gonna take their life 'cos you're there for him, you offer therapy, I did, I offered medical help.
"I knew for a long, long time [that he was struggling]. Since he lost his job on Strictly ... you saw this downward spiral in him. The light went off. That magic .
"You know his mental health, he started to struggle, he felt like he wasn't wanted any more."
Lisa went on to explain another factor that impacted Robin's mental health was his love life because he was single and he dreamed of getting married and settling down.
She added: "He felt that he couldn't get a boyfriend any more ...It was unbelievable because we're all in very happy relationships and all he ever wanted was that bungalow, a dog, Sunday roasts with his husband.
"He made really silly decisions bless him ... with men ... And I'd say: 'No, not this one'. And he'd really, really quickly and I just wish that he could hear how loved he was ... "
Lisa went on to insist she wants to honour Robin's memory by campaigning for better help for those suffering from mental health issues - especially within the gay community.
She said: "I will always have him ... he would be my backpack in life. He's with me. And I want to keep that going forever. And if that means helping people with mental health issues then I want to do that.
"Especially in London with the gay scene. Men struggle. If I can be there for them then I want to be because there's not as much help out there as there should be. "
Robin was found dead at a hotel in London in February 2024. He was 44. Lisa opened up about her pal in a written statement which was submitted as part of the inquest into his death and it was read during a hearing at West London Coroner's Court earlier this month.
During her turn on Loose Women, Lisa admitted she found it difficult to keep the details of Robin's death private until the inquest and explained she wrote down everything she "loved about him" for her submission.
She said: "It's been really hard since he passed. It's been two years last Thursday was the anniversary. Two years have gone by and you think to yourself ...
"How could I have lost such a wonderful person in my life and why was his life taken so, so soon. He was too young to die.
"Not being able to tell anybody, you know publicly, it was our business that he had taken his life. People speculated because we'd said it was mental health and then because of the inquest we had to wait and we never knew how long it would take.
"So yes, for the inquest I wrote my statement, everything that I loved about him, every bit of joy."
