Gogglebox star George Gilbey died of injuries from skylight fall, inquest hears

George Gilbey at Elstree Studios during the Celebrity Big Brother TV show in 2014. Photograph: James Shaw/Rex/Shutterstock

The Gogglebox star George Gilbey died from traumatic injuries to the head and torso after falling from a height at work, an inquest has heard.

The 40-year-old reality TV star died after an accident at work in Shoeburyness, Essex, on 27 March. His provisional cause of death has been recorded as “traumatic injury to head and torso consistent with fall from height”.

The inquest on Monday was opened and closed by the Essex senior coroner Lincoln Brookes, pending the outcome of a criminal investigation. In March a man in his 40s was arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter in connection with the death.

Gilbey fell through a skylight while working on a roof, the inquest in Chelmsford was told. A postmortem examination found the traumatic injuries to his head and torso were “consistent” with a fall from height.

Gilbey had been “working on a roof when he fell through a plastic skylight and landed on the ground below”, the coroner’s officer Deborah Frost told the hearing. Paramedics and police attended but Gilbey died at the scene, she said.

Gilbey was best known for appearing on the Channel 4 series alongside his mother, Linda McGarry, and stepfather, Pete McGarry, who died in 2021. He also appeared on the 14th series of Celebrity Big Brother in 2014, reaching the final.

Brookes said he had received a written request from Essex police to suspend inquest proceedings pending the outcome of a criminal investigation, which he granted. Brookes said he would adjourn proceedings for four months.