Sophie Hannah Gradon (25 October 1985 – 20 June 2018) was an English model. In 2008, she won Miss Newcastle. In 2009, Gradon won the title

Miss Great Britain Miss Great Britain is Britain's longest running beauty contest held annually in Britain since 1945. Owner and CEO John Singh made history crowning his first winner and to this date only the first black Miss Great Britain 1996. Singer and dancer A ...

. In 2016, she was a contestant on the second series of

ITV2 ITV2 is a British free-to-air television channel owned by ITV Digital Channels, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998. For a number of years, it had the largest audience share after the five analogue terrestrial station ...

's ''

Love Island Love Island may refer to: Film * ''Love Island'' (1952 film), an American film directed by Adam Lloyd starring Todd Wathen and Eva Gabor * ''Love Island'' (2014 film), directed by Jasmila Žbanić Music * ''Love Island'' (album), a 1978 album ...

''.

Early life and education

Gradon was born in

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

. She was educated at

Dame Allan's School Dame Allan's Schools is a collection of independent day schools in Fenham, in the west end of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It comprises a coeducational junior school, single-sex senior schools and a coeducational sixth form. Founded in 1705 ...

and she went on to complete her 6th form career at Ponteland High School.

GCE Advanced Level The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...

s. She obtained a 2:1 degree in media, culture and society from

Northumbria University , mottoeng = A lifetime of learning , established = 1877 - Rutherford College of Technology1969 - Newcastle Polytechnic1992 - gained university status , type = Public , budget = ...

Career

In 2008, Gradon won the Miss Newcastle title. In 2009, she won the

title. Gradon worked as a marketing manager. She was a promoter of the NE1 campaign in

Newcastle City Centre Newcastle City Centre is the city centre district of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is the historical heart of the city and serves as the main cultural and commercial centre of the North East England region. The city centre forms the core of ...

, through which she raised money for charities. In this capacity, Gradon successfully solicited financial support from

Calum Best Calum Milan Best (born February 6, 1981) is a British-American television personality. He is the only child of footballer George Best. Early life Best was born in San Jose, California, the son of parents from the United Kingdom: Angie Best (bor ...

for the

Great North Run The Great North Run (branded the Simplyhealth Great North Run for sponsorship purposes) is the largest half marathon in the world, taking place annually in North East England each September. Participants run between Newcastle upon Tyne and Sou ...

in 2011. Thousands of pounds were raised to send children with cancer on a trip to

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cypru ...

. ''Chronicle Live'' reported that Calum agreed to support this charity after he saw the work Gradon did for the Sara's Hope Foundation. In 2011, Gradon appeared on

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It h ...

in support of the campaign "The Great North Fitness Revolution". She was a contestant on ''Love Island'' in 2016. During her time on the reality TV series, ''Love Island'', Gradon began a relationship with barman Tom Powell before coupling up with glamour model Katie Salmon, ''Love Island'' first same-sex pairing. She decided to walk from the villa on Day 39. In 2018, Gradon was part of a talk on social media and its impact on children. In a March 2018 interview with

Radio Aire Radio Aire was an Independent Local Radio station, serving Leeds and West Yorkshire. The station was merged and relaunched as Greatest Hits Radio Yorkshire, as part of a rebrand, on 1 September 2020. History Radio Aire was launched at 6a ...

, Gradon revealed that she was the victim of intense

cyberbullying Cyberbullying or cyberharassment is a form of bullying or harassment using electronic means. Cyberbullying and cyberharassment are also known as online bullying. It has become increasingly common, especially among teenagers, as the digital ...

and

internet troll In slang, a troll is a person who posts or makes inflammatory, insincere, digressive, extraneous, or off-topic messages online (such as in social media, a newsgroup, a forum, a chat room, a online video game), or in real life, with the ...

s. She reported in the interview:

"It was horrific. I think when you get so many comments on the scale we did coming out of thousands of followers."

She added:

"There are fans and positive comments but people would focus on the negatives. Sometimes I would look for it...There would be so many negative comments. They are commenting on the way you look, the way you talk. They would come up with an opinion of you on a TV show where they've watched you for 45 minutes."

Personal life

In 2008, Gradon dated Wayne Lineker, brother of

Gary Lineker Gary Winston Lineker (; born 30 November 1960) is an English former professional footballer and current sports broadcaster. He is regarded as having been one of the greatest English strikers. His media career began with the BBC, where he ha ...

. In 2013, Gradon dated rugby player

Danny Cipriani Danny Cipriani (; born 2 November 1987) is an English professional rugby union player currently unattached. He most recently played for Premiership Rugby side Bath and previously played for Gloucester, Sale Sharks and Wasps in the Premiership a ...

. In 2016, reports stated that Gradon was "openly

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, wh ...

". She was widely known among the social scene in

Death

Gradon was found dead at her parents house in Medburn on 20 June 2018. She was 32. A spokesperson for the

Northumbria Police Northumbria Police is a territorial police force in England. It is responsible for policing the metropolitan boroughs of Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, North Tyneside, South Tyneside and the City of Sunderland, as well as the ceremonial count ...

reported that there did not appear to be suspicious circumstances and a cause of death was not initially revealed. Officials later stated the cause of death was likely suicide as Gradon had

hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging in ...

herself. Her death sparked a response among media outlets, with the organisation of Miss Great Britain and several members of the cast of ''Love Island'' expressing condolences. Her funeral was held on 5 July 2018. According to an

inquest An inquest is a judicial inquiry in common law jurisdictions, particularly one held to determine the cause of a person's death. Conducted by a judge, jury, or government official, an inquest may or may not require an autopsy carried out by a co ...

in April 2019, Gradon died by suicide after taking cocaine and alcohol. About 20 days after her death, Gradon's boyfriend Aaron Armstrong also died by suicide.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gradon, Sophie 1985 births 2018 deaths English beauty pageant winners People from Newcastle upon Tyne People educated at Dame Allan's School Alumni of Northumbria University Love Island (2015 TV series) contestants English marketing people 20th-century English women 20th-century English people 20th-century English businesspeople 21st-century English women 21st-century English businesspeople Victims of cyberbullying Bisexual women LGBT models English LGBT entertainers Bisexual entertainers English socialites Suicides by hanging in England 20th-century English businesswomen 21st-century English businesswomen 2018 suicides People from Ponteland Female suicides