Why Tara Palmer-Tomkinson once gave a homeless man £1,000 after seeing him ‘smiling in the cold’
AS the world reacts to the death of Tara Palmer-Tomkinson at the age of 45, fans are reliving their favourite anecdotes which showcase her unique character.
Known as the original It Girl, the star passed away at her London home today after being diagnosed with a brain tumour last January.
And while she lived a life of glamour and occasional excess - battling through some troubled times - she also had a charitable spirit.
In an interview with last year, she said: "I’m extremely generous and would give the coat off my back.
"Once I was driving home to Hampshire when I saw a homeless man who always stood outside Prime Time, the old video shop in South Kensington.
"My boyfriend had given me £1,000 for my birthday and though I wasn’t ungrateful, I wished he’d bought a meaningful present like my favourite perfume so I was a bit down in the mouth.
"I spotted this guy while I was heading to the M3 and drove on, but couldn’t stop thinking of this one homeless man out smiling through the freezing weather.
"On the spur of the moment, I did a U-turn, drove all the way back and gave him £1,000 and he gave me a big hug."
Tara, who was close friend of Prince Charles and a trained classical pianist, revealed she was fighting the illness after going for a set of blood tests after feeling run down the previous summer.
Doctors discovered a growth in her pituitary gland which was non-malignant but was affecting the production of hormone prolactin.
A police spokesman said: “Police were called by London Ambulance Service at approximately 13:40hrs on Wednesday, 8 February to an address in Bramham Gardens, SW5.
“A woman, aged in her 40s, was pronounced dead at the scene. Next of kin have been informed.
“The death is being treated as unexplained. At this early stage, police are not treating the death as suspicious."
Following the news of her death, The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall have said they are "deeply saddened and our thoughts are so much with the family."
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