Jump to content

Katy French: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
Update
Line 10: Line 10:
| homepage=
| homepage=
}}
}}
'''Katy Ellen French''' ([[31 October]] [[1983]] &ndash; [[6 December]] [[2007]]) was an [[Irish people|Irish]] [[socialite]] and model. Born in [[Basel]], [[Switzerland]], French's family moved to Ireland and lived in the Sandyford area briefly when she was two years old but eventually settled in [[Enniskerry]], [[County Wicklow|Co. Wicklow]]. According to the [[BBC]], "in the space of less than two years, she had become one of Ireland's best-known models and socialites."<ref name="BBC1">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7132183.stm Post-mortem is due on Irish model] - [[BBC News]]. [[7 December]] [[2007]]</ref> She died aged 24. [[Garda Síochána|Gardaí]] believe that [[cocaine]] was a major contributory factor in French's death. On February 20th 2008, Irish police issued a statement saying: "Police have arrested a man and a woman in connection with circumstances surrounding the death of Katy French."
'''Katy Ellen French''' ([[31 October]] [[1983]] &ndash; [[6 December]] [[2007]]) was an [[Irish people|Irish]] [[socialite]] and model. Born in [[Basel]], [[Switzerland]], French's family moved to Ireland and lived in the Sandyford area briefly when she was two years old but eventually settled in [[Enniskerry]], [[County Wicklow|Co. Wicklow]]. According to the [[BBC]], "in the space of less than two years, she had become one of Ireland's best-known models and socialites."<ref name="BBC1">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7132183.stm Post-mortem is due on Irish model] - [[BBC News]]. [[7 December]] [[2007]]</ref> She collapsed at a friend's house on December 2nd 2007 and died on December 6th.<ref name=Logue>{{cite web|last=Logue|first=Patrick|url=http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/breaking/2008/0220/breaking28.htm|title=Three arrested in Katy French investigation|date=2008-02-20|accessdate=2008-02-20|publisher=''Irish Independent''}}</ref> A [[post mortem]] examination determined that she had suffered brain damage. Traces of [[cocaine]] were found in her body.<ref name=RTEFeb>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/0220/frenchk.html|title=Three arrests in French investigation|date=2008-02-20|accessdate=2008-02-20|publisher=RTE}}</ref> A [[Garda Síochána|police]] investigation into her death is ongoing. Three people were arrested by police on February 20th 2008.<ref name=Logue/>
They later confirmed that a second man, in his mid-20s, was arrested and was being questioned at Trim Garda Station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/celebrity-set-face-grilling-in-drugs-inquiry-1242158.html|title=Celebrity set face grilling in drugs inquiry|date=2007-12-10|accessdate=2007-12-11|publisher=''Irish Independent''}}</ref>


== Career ==
== Career ==
French attended [[Alexandra College]] in [[Milltown, Dublin|Milltown]], [[Dublin]] from the age of seven. She studied psychology before working for the Assets Modelling Agency. She represented [[Sony Ericsson]] and [[Suzuki]], coming to greater acclaim in 2007 as a result of her [[fiancé]], restaurateur Marcus Sweeney, ending their relationship in a very public fashion after French was photographed for a [[lingerie]] shoot for the ''[[Sunday Independent]]'' in his restaurant in January of that year.<ref>[http://www.independent.ie/national-news/what-marcus-sweeney-and-katy-french-did-next-122460.html What Marcus Sweeney and Katy French did next . . .] - [[Sunday Independent]] - [[February 25]] [[2007]]</ref> As a result of this publicity, her image appeared more regularly in daily Irish tabloid newspapers and she made numerous television appearances on shows such as [[Radio Telefís Éireann|RTÉ]]'s ''[[The Podge and Rodge Show]]'' in April 2007 and ''[[Tubridy Tonight]]'' a week before her death.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/i-was-with-katy-in-the-house-and-i-tried-to-help-her-1239523.html|title=I was with Katy in the house and I tried to help her|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[Irish Independent]]}}</ref> On ''Tubridy'' she spoke of her appearance on ''Celebrities Go Wild'' (where she proclaimed she'd brought a [[vibrator]] as her luxury item) for the [[People in Need Telethon]] as well as her relationship break up with Sweeney. Mention was also made of her birthday party which she was to celebrate the following week, having missed her birthday due to ''Celebrities Go Wild''. Host [[Ryan Tubridy]] was invited to the event. Footage too was shown of the charity single "Down in the Bog" which was to be released as a Christmas single.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/ireland/article3231137.ece|title=Model Katy French dies 5 days after collapsing at party|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[Belfast Telegraph]]}}</ref>
French attended [[Alexandra College]] in [[Milltown, Dublin|Milltown]], [[Dublin]] from the age of seven. She studied psychology before working for the Assets Modelling Agency. She represented [[Sony Ericsson]] and [[Suzuki]], coming to greater acclaim in 2007 as a result of her [[fiancé]], restaurateur Marcus Sweeney, ending their relationship in a very public fashion after French was photographed for a [[lingerie]] shoot for the ''[[Sunday Independent]]'' in his restaurant in January of that year.<ref>[http://www.independent.ie/national-news/what-marcus-sweeney-and-katy-french-did-next-122460.html What Marcus Sweeney and Katy French did next . . .] - [[Sunday Independent]] - [[February 25]] [[2007]]</ref> As a result of this publicity, her image appeared more regularly in daily Irish tabloid newspapers and she made numerous television appearances on shows such as [[Radio Telefís Éireann|RTÉ]]'s ''[[The Podge and Rodge Show]]'' in April 2007 and ''[[Tubridy Tonight]]'' a week before her death.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/i-was-with-katy-in-the-house-and-i-tried-to-help-her-1239523.html|title=I was with Katy in the house and I tried to help her|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[Irish Independent]]}}</ref> On ''Tubridy Tonight'' she spoke of her appearance on ''Celebrities Go Wild'' (where she stated that she had brought a [[vibrator]] as her luxury item) for the [[People in Need Telethon]] as well as her relationship break up with Sweeney. Mention was also made of her birthday party which she was to celebrate the following week, having missed her birthday due to ''Celebrities Go Wild''. Host [[Ryan Tubridy]] was invited to the event. Footage too was shown of the charity single "Down in the Bog" which was to be released as a Christmas single.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/ireland/article3231137.ece|title=Model Katy French dies 5 days after collapsing at party|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[Belfast Telegraph]]}}</ref> She once worked for the Irish charity [[GOAL (organization)|GOAL]] in [[Calcutta]], [[India]].<ref>[http://www.rte.ie/arts/2007/1207/frenchk.html Tributes paid to Katy French] - [[RTE]] News - [[December 07]], [[2007]]</ref> She wrote a column for ''[[Social & Personal]]'' magazine.<ref name=Mambuck/>


In an interview with ''[[Hot Press (magazine)|Hot Press]]'''s Jason O'Toole,<ref>[http://www.hotpress.com/archive/4203233.html "This year's model"] - ''[[Hot Press (magazine)|Hot Press]]'' - 26 Oct 2007</ref> she revealed that she would consider having an [[abortion]] if she became pregnant during the peak of her career, a controversial claim in Ireland where abortion is [[Abortion in Ireland|effectively illegal]], and that she loved fur despite being a "massive animal lover". She also aired her religious beliefs (she was a member of the [[Church of Ireland]] but also practised [[Catholicism]]) and spoke highly of [[Islam]] and her Muslim friends saying, "When you read the [[Qur'an|Koran]], you realise that Islam is a beautiful religion".<ref>"Blessing of troubled teenage years" - ''[[Irish Independent]]'' WEEKEND REVIEW - Sat. Dec 8 2007, p.5</ref> In the same interview she was asked if she had ever used cocaine and denied ever having done so. Yet in [[November 2007]], French told an Irish [[tabloid]] that she had used [[cocaine]] in the past.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/andrea-fills-in-the-gaps-over-katys-final-hours-1242148.html |title=Andrea fills in the gaps over Katy's final hours|date=2007-12-10|accessdate=2007-12-11|publisher=''Irish Independent''}}</ref> She once worked for the Irish charity [[GOAL (organization)|GOAL]] in [[Calcutta]], [[India]].<ref>[http://www.rte.ie/arts/2007/1207/frenchk.html Tributes paid to Katy French] - [[RTE]] News - [[December 07]], [[2007]]</ref>
In an interview with ''[[Hot Press (magazine)|Hot Press]]'''s Jason O'Toole,<ref>[http://www.hotpress.com/archive/4203233.html "This year's model"] - ''[[Hot Press (magazine)|Hot Press]]'' - 26 Oct 2007</ref> she revealed that she would consider having an [[abortion]] if she became pregnant during the peak of her career, a controversial claim in Ireland where abortion is [[Abortion in Ireland|effectively illegal]], and that she loved fur despite being a "massive animal lover". She also aired her religious beliefs (she was a member of the [[Church of Ireland]] but also practised [[Catholicism]]) and spoke highly of [[Islam]] and her Muslim friends saying, "When you read the [[Qur'an|Koran]], you realise that Islam is a beautiful religion".<ref>"Blessing of troubled teenage years" - ''[[Irish Independent]]'' WEEKEND REVIEW - Sat. Dec 8 2007, p.5</ref> In the same interview she was asked if she had ever used cocaine and denied ever having done so. Yet in [[November 2007]], French told an Irish [[tabloid]] that she had used [[cocaine]] in the past,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/andrea-fills-in-the-gaps-over-katys-final-hours-1242148.html |title=Andrea fills in the gaps over Katy's final hours|date=2007-12-10|accessdate=2007-12-11|publisher=''Irish Independent''}}</ref> but had since stopped using it.<ref name=Brady>{{cite web|last=Brady|first=Tom|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/three-face-arrest-in-tragic-katy-death-probe-1286873.html|title=Three face arrest in tragic Katy death probe|date=2008-02-11|accessdate=2008-02-20|publisher=Irish Independent}}</ref> The week before she died, she celebrated her 24th birthday with celebrity and media friends.<ref name=Logue/>


== Death ==
== Death ==
Katy French died on the evening of [[December 6]] [[2007]] in Our Lady's Hospital, [[Navan]] in [[County Meath|Co. Meath]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/1206/frenchk.html|title=Model Katy French dies in hospital|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[RTÉ]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7130574.stm|title=Top Irish model dies in hospital|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[BBC]]}}</ref> having collapsed at a friend's house in [[Kilmessan]], [[County Meath]] in the early hours of Sunday [[December 2]]. The [[Autopsy|post mortem]] revealed that she had taken cocaine before her collapse, and suffered brain damage.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/1207/frenchk.html|title=Post mortem says French suffered brain damage|date=2007-12-07|accessdate=2007-12-07|publisher=[[RTÉ]]}}</ref> [[An Garda Síochána]] have launched an inquiry into her death.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,315661,00.html|title=Irish Model Dies in Arms of Her Sister, Police Launch Investigation|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[Fox News]]}}</ref> She was buried in her hometown of [[Enniskerry]], [[County Wicklow]] on [[December 10]].
Katy French died on the evening of [[December 6]] [[2007]] in Our Lady's Hospital, [[Navan]] in [[County Meath|Co. Meath]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/1206/frenchk.html|title=Model Katy French dies in hospital|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[RTÉ]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7130574.stm|title=Top Irish model dies in hospital|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[BBC]]}}</ref> having collapsed at a friend's house in [[Kilmessan]], [[County Meath]] in the early hours of Sunday [[December 2]]. She was buried in her hometown of [[Enniskerry]], [[County Wicklow]] on [[December 10]]. The [[Taoiseach]]'s [[aide de camp]] Captain Michael Tracey attended her funeral.<ref name=Logue/> His attendance was criticized because the government was not represented at the funerals of two young men who had died in apparently similar circumstances the week before French's death.<ref name=Mambuck>{{cite web|last=Mambuck|first=Maeva|url=http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Story?id=4034585&page=1|title=Model Katy French Remains Controversial After Death|date=2007-12-21|accessdate=2008-02-20|publisher=ABC News}}</ref>

The [[Autopsy|post mortem]] revealed that she had suffered brain damage.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/1207/frenchk.html|title=Post mortem says French suffered brain damage|date=2007-12-07|accessdate=2007-12-07|publisher=[[RTÉ]]}}</ref> Traces of cocaine were found in her body.<ref name=RTEFeb/> [[An Garda Síochána]] have launched an inquiry into her death.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,315661,00.html|title=Irish Model Dies in Arms of Her Sister, Police Launch Investigation|date=2007-12-06|accessdate=2007-12-06|publisher=[[Fox News]]}}</ref> On February 20th 2008, three people were arrested in connection with the investigation.<ref name=RTEFeb/>


== References ==
== References ==

Revision as of 13:46, 20 February 2008

Katy French
File:Katyfrench2.jpg

Katy Ellen French (31 October 1983 – 6 December 2007) was an Irish socialite and model. Born in Basel, Switzerland, French's family moved to Ireland and lived in the Sandyford area briefly when she was two years old but eventually settled in Enniskerry, Co. Wicklow. According to the BBC, "in the space of less than two years, she had become one of Ireland's best-known models and socialites."[1] She collapsed at a friend's house on December 2nd 2007 and died on December 6th.[2] A post mortem examination determined that she had suffered brain damage. Traces of cocaine were found in her body.[3] A police investigation into her death is ongoing. Three people were arrested by police on February 20th 2008.[2]

Career

French attended Alexandra College in Milltown, Dublin from the age of seven. She studied psychology before working for the Assets Modelling Agency. She represented Sony Ericsson and Suzuki, coming to greater acclaim in 2007 as a result of her fiancé, restaurateur Marcus Sweeney, ending their relationship in a very public fashion after French was photographed for a lingerie shoot for the Sunday Independent in his restaurant in January of that year.[4] As a result of this publicity, her image appeared more regularly in daily Irish tabloid newspapers and she made numerous television appearances on shows such as RTÉ's The Podge and Rodge Show in April 2007 and Tubridy Tonight a week before her death.[5] On Tubridy Tonight she spoke of her appearance on Celebrities Go Wild (where she stated that she had brought a vibrator as her luxury item) for the People in Need Telethon as well as her relationship break up with Sweeney. Mention was also made of her birthday party which she was to celebrate the following week, having missed her birthday due to Celebrities Go Wild. Host Ryan Tubridy was invited to the event. Footage too was shown of the charity single "Down in the Bog" which was to be released as a Christmas single.[6] She once worked for the Irish charity GOAL in Calcutta, India.[7] She wrote a column for Social & Personal magazine.[8]

In an interview with Hot Press's Jason O'Toole,[9] she revealed that she would consider having an abortion if she became pregnant during the peak of her career, a controversial claim in Ireland where abortion is effectively illegal, and that she loved fur despite being a "massive animal lover". She also aired her religious beliefs (she was a member of the Church of Ireland but also practised Catholicism) and spoke highly of Islam and her Muslim friends saying, "When you read the Koran, you realise that Islam is a beautiful religion".[10] In the same interview she was asked if she had ever used cocaine and denied ever having done so. Yet in November 2007, French told an Irish tabloid that she had used cocaine in the past,[11] but had since stopped using it.[12] The week before she died, she celebrated her 24th birthday with celebrity and media friends.[2]

Death

Katy French died on the evening of December 6 2007 in Our Lady's Hospital, Navan in Co. Meath,[13][14] having collapsed at a friend's house in Kilmessan, County Meath in the early hours of Sunday December 2. She was buried in her hometown of Enniskerry, County Wicklow on December 10. The Taoiseach's aide de camp Captain Michael Tracey attended her funeral.[2] His attendance was criticized because the government was not represented at the funerals of two young men who had died in apparently similar circumstances the week before French's death.[8]

The post mortem revealed that she had suffered brain damage.[15] Traces of cocaine were found in her body.[3] An Garda Síochána have launched an inquiry into her death.[16] On February 20th 2008, three people were arrested in connection with the investigation.[3]

References

  1. ^ Post-mortem is due on Irish model - BBC News. 7 December 2007
  2. ^ a b c d Logue, Patrick (2008-02-20). "Three arrested in Katy French investigation". Irish Independent. Retrieved 2008-02-20. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  3. ^ a b c "Three arrests in French investigation". RTE. 2008-02-20. Retrieved 2008-02-20.
  4. ^ What Marcus Sweeney and Katy French did next . . . - Sunday Independent - February 25 2007
  5. ^ "I was with Katy in the house and I tried to help her". Irish Independent. 2007-12-06. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
  6. ^ "Model Katy French dies 5 days after collapsing at party". Belfast Telegraph. 2007-12-06. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
  7. ^ Tributes paid to Katy French - RTE News - December 07, 2007
  8. ^ a b Mambuck, Maeva (2007-12-21). "Model Katy French Remains Controversial After Death". ABC News. Retrieved 2008-02-20.
  9. ^ "This year's model" - Hot Press - 26 Oct 2007
  10. ^ "Blessing of troubled teenage years" - Irish Independent WEEKEND REVIEW - Sat. Dec 8 2007, p.5
  11. ^ "Andrea fills in the gaps over Katy's final hours". Irish Independent. 2007-12-10. Retrieved 2007-12-11. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ Brady, Tom (2008-02-11). "Three face arrest in tragic Katy death probe". Irish Independent. Retrieved 2008-02-20.
  13. ^ "Model Katy French dies in hospital". RTÉ. 2007-12-06. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
  14. ^ "Top Irish model dies in hospital". BBC. 2007-12-06. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
  15. ^ "Post mortem says French suffered brain damage". RTÉ. 2007-12-07. Retrieved 2007-12-07.
  16. ^ "Irish Model Dies in Arms of Her Sister, Police Launch Investigation". Fox News. 2007-12-06. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Katy_French&oldid=192795339"