George Ward, known as Cherry Valentine, has passed away at only 28 years old. The star shot to fame for his appearance on the hit reality show RuPaul's Drag Race UK's second season. In a statement released by his family, they confirmed that he had tragically died on Sunday.
Their statement read: "It is with the most heart-wrenching and deepest sadness to inform you that our George – Cherry Valentine – has tragically passed away. This will come as a profound shock to most people and we understand there is no easy way for this to be announced. As his family, we are still processing his death and our lives will never be the same. We understand how much he is loved and how many lives he has inspired and touched. All we ask is for your patience and your prayers in this time. We love you Georgie."
After the news broke, countless fans, fellow contestants and friends from the show took to social media to send their love to Cherry and her family. Season one winner, Colwyn Bay-born The Vivienne, took to Instagram to celebrate Cherry. She said: "I have no words. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of your family Cherry Valentine."
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Fellow season two contestant, Bimini, tweeted this morning. Bimini was especially close to Cherry during her run on the show and frequently toured together. Her tweet read: "At a loss for words. One of those souls so pure, so raw, so real. I’m incredibly lucky to have known George and witnessed their infectious spirit. Their patience and kindness was their superpower. They saw you for you and not many people have that empathetic trait. My heart."
Newport's Tayce, who was also on season two and lip-synced against Cherry, took to Instagram to post a story of a black screen with a cherry emoji. It's believed that Tayce, along with Bimini, were close, toured together and spent a lot of time together outside of working commitments.
Cherry, who is originally from Darlington in Durham, recently released a BBC documentary documenting her Taveller roots and returning to the community as an openly queer person. During filming of season two amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, Ward returned to work as a nurse where he helped countless people who were critically ill.
Back in January 2021, Ward told Metro about his decision returning to nursing. "I ended up going back into [nursing], working in neuro for a bit for a couple of months. It was high intensity neuro for adults, so it was [treating patients with] brain damage and brain injuries," he said.
"It was a weird crossover because I’m obviously mental health-trained. During the pandemic, it was very physical health-focused, so it was dealing with Covid, which was a bit of a shock. I did that until we went back filming again."
A Gofundme page has been set up to remember George and the legacy of his drag pursuits of Cherry Valentine.
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