Linda Robson took Paul Danan under her wing after his acting gigs dried up and he was left without money.

The late Hollyoaks and Love Island star tragically passed away this year on January 15 at the age of 46, having faced a tumultuous life in the spotlight, including a struggle with drug addiction. The reality TV personality, who also appeared on Celebrity Big Brother, is said to have died after he had ‘slipped and fell’ in his luxury apartment near Bristol.

Two months on, Linda, 66, has opened up to Bella magazine about the incredibly challenging year she’s had. The Loose Women panellist revealed how she’s been struggling in the wake of his d3ath and the heartbreaking dementia diagnosis of her Birds of a Feather co-star, Pauline Quirke.

The TV star shared how she had fond memories of her time with Paul, which included when they had appeared on Celebrity Coach Trip. “I travelled around Portugal with him for 10 days,’ she said. ‘I loved him – he was such a good boy, he really was,” she said.

Linda opened up about how tough this year has been on her ( 
Image:
Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Paul tragically died on January 15 earlier this year ( 
Image:
WireImage)

“Lesley [Joseph] and I looked after him on Coach Trip because he didn’t have any money, so we helped him out with that and then we got him presents for his little boy, DeNir.” However, sadly Linda had been away when she found out about Paul’s d3ath, saying: “I was away on a cruise when I found out.”

In a podcast last year, Paul told how he was living in a ‘dry house’ in Bristol which is believed to be the flat where he was found dead. Over the years, he had been brutally honest about his struggles with addiction. The actor even came close to d3ath after an overdose that occurred shortly after he left a rehab facility in South Africa. He was found “choking on his last breath” after he took an overdose of heroin.

Months before his d3ath, Danan discussed how he ended up working in a phone shop after the offers dried up.

On a podcast in November, he said: “It’s very tough. I mean, maybe years ago, I shouldn’t have left Hollyoaks, but I made that decision because, after four years, I didn’t want to be typecast and back then, everyone didn’t want to be the next Ken Barlow. You wanted to go off and play different roles, especially when you’re a real actor.”

Paul explained how starring in reality shows led to the demise of his career. He said: “It was a detriment to my acting career because it didn’t help. Maybe if I had stayed in the background and didn’t make a big splash, I would probably have been alright. But you know me, if I’m on a show, I’m going to give it my all and be TV gold! It didn’t help with my acting career because suddenly people were like ‘Oh, we don’t want to hire a reality star!'”