'BEST MAN I EVER MET'
Robin Windsor’s pals launched frantic three-day search for Strictly Star before he was found dead in hotel
Robin had a 'troubling incident' over New Year
PALS of Strictly star Robin Windsor reportedly launched a three-day search for the troubled dancer before he died.
The 44-year-old vanished last week before being found dead in a London hotel room on Monday.
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Robin had spoken openly about his battle with depression.
But in the days before his death a panicked friend rang around all his pals asking where he was, the .
Pal and fellow Strictly star Vincent Simone said Robin was known to go missing and it was an "ongoing problem".
It comes as:
Read More on Robin Windsor
- Robin sent on "a downwards spiral" after Strictly Come Dancing axe
- His final dance partner says she was "next to him on his darkest nights" in tribute
- He lived on Lidl beans on toast & washed pots until 3am before big break
- Strictly Come Dancing releases statement about Robin's shock death
- Kristina Rhianoff says he was in "excruciating pain"
- Robin endured an agonising health battle prior to his death
He explained: "He would detach himself from people for two or three days.
"Then he would come back to the world, to reality.
"But this time, he didn’t come back. He was the best man I ever met."
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It has since emerged the Latin and ballroom dancer suffered a troubling incident over New Year.
On January 4, Robin told his followers: "Big shout out and love to everyone who's reached out and checked in the last week.
"Sorry I have not replied... it's been a bit of a trying time and things are looking up. Robin."
A friend told the Daily Mail: "He kept saying that something had happened over New Year but he wouldn't say what it was.
Alison Hammond pays tribute to Robin Windsor on This Morning saying she is 'completely heartbroken' by her Strictly partner's death
Inside Strictly star’s agonising health battle
ROBIN Windsor was forced to quit Strictly or "risk ending up in a wheelchair", it has emerged.
The 44-year-old BBC star previously opened up about his exit from the show, before his tragic death.
Robin left Strictly in 2014, claiming bosses had axed him following a "horrible back operation".
Speaking at the time, he said: "Leaving Strictly wasn’t my choice.
"I had a horrible back operation and they decided that they didn’t want to ask me back the next year.
"It was probably for health and safety reasons, in case something happened, but I was physically fit."
Talking about when the horror injury happened, Robin explained he had "slipped a disc in [his] back", adding that "the nerve was exposed, causing agonising pains shooting down [his] leg".
He said: “I was paralysed on the floor of my friend's house as the pain was so bad. I was there for three or four days.
“I couldn't risk going ahead. It was a heartbreaking decision but I had no choice.
"If the slipped disc had popped out while I was dancing, I could have ended up with permanent nerve damage and been in a wheelchair.”
"He sounded absolutely traumatised – whatever had happened must have been truly awful."
Weeks later he shared a quote from Dr Thema Bryant hinting that he had experienced trauma.
It read: "Trauma teaches you to expect and accept the bare minimum.
"In this new season, may you adjust your standards and learn to receive the maximum.
"You are worthy. You are enough. You deserve overflow."
His final Instagram was a black and white mirror selfie captioned: “Hiding in the shadows.”
The dancer had spent his final days working on a luxury cruise ship and taking in the sights of Africa.
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Robin finished runner-up on the 2012 series of Strictly Come Dancing with actress Lisa Riley and became one of the show's most recognisable faces.
He first appeared on the 2010 season with Patsy Kensit, before partnering Anita Dobson two years later and Dragons' Den star Deborah Meaden in 2013.
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans for free on 116123.
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