Man, 36, found dead 'would have been giddy' at…

Man, 36, found dead 'would have been giddy' at celebrity's message

Friends of a Wirral man have said he would be "beaming and giddy" after Paris Hilton paid tribute to him.

The death of Drew Cockton, 36, was confirmed by his family yesterday (Sunday, October 23). In a Facebook post his mum Kate said: “We are truly, utterly heartbroken to have to tell you that our beloved Drew Peter George Cockton (my gorgeous boy) died peacefully at home yesterday. We are devastated beyond belief. Life is never, ever going to be the same again. Rest peacefully darling boy."

The Wirral-based entrepreneur was the owner of the vegan fragrance brand, Owen Drew, and triumphed on the BBC series after scooping a £50,000 investment for his business from Dragon Touker Suleyman. Drew was also an LGBTQ+ campaigner and on Friday evening held the second North West LGBTQ+ Business Awards, which he founded, at Liverpool's Titanic Hotel.

Since then, tributes have flooded in for the prominent Merseyside businessman, including a series of Instagram stories posted by American socialite Paris Hilton, who was a fan of his brand. Sharing pictures of herself with Drew to her 20 million followers, Paris wrote: “Devastated to hear the news of my friend & #LittleHilton @mrowendrew. He was so kind with a heart of gold.

“My heart breaks for his loved ones & family. Sending them all my condolences & so much love. RIP sweet soul. You were such a light! Love you always and forever.”

The 41-year-old media personality posted a picture of a letter Drewhad sent her in August this year. Thanking Paris from the bottom of his heart for her “kindness” and “generosity”, Drew signed the letter off with “with love, your Liverpool little Hilton”.

Sharing Paris' tribute Drew's friends said he would have been left "beaming and giddy" because of the celebrity's message.

Tina Towers wrote: "Drew you should be writing this post. You should be beaming and giddy because Paris Hilton had posted about you. I know how much you adored her. Can you hear the lovely things she’s said about you too? She knew how gorgeous you were, just like we all did."

In a separate post, Marty J O'Brien, added: " Drew Peter George Cockton always knew that he would be friends with Paris one day. He’d talk about it as we were listening to Stars are Blind on a Thursday night before going out to Cruz 101. He never ever doubted himself and he did it. One of his many well-earned achievements."

Mr Cockton sent Paris Hilton a letter thanking her for her support earlier this year (Instagram / @parishilton)

Drew rose to prominence after scooping a huge investment from multimillionaire Mr Suleyman on Dragons' Den. The budding entrepreneur impressed the Dragons after detailing his previous mental health issues and explaining why these were the driving force behind the creation of his business - and why the concept of wellness was so important to him.

Viewers watched as Drew began by explaining to the Dragons how at the age of 22, he had opened a hotel business on Manchester's Canal Street, quitting his job in financial services "against all the advice of my family" after he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

At the time, he said: "I was totally inexperienced. I was working so hard that I actually made myself quite ill and had a breakdown." Undeterred by what he described as "failure", Drew started his business from the kitchen table of his home six years ago, making and selling candles on social media. The firm now has its own premises in Birkenhead , producing natural soy wax candles, soy wax melts and luxurious room mists, with all the products, made entirely by hand.

Then last year, he created the North West LGBTQ+ Business Awards, with the aim of highlighting the enormous contribution the LGBTQ+ community makes to the North West economy.

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