Tina Malone shares heartbreaking final text from late husband Paul after revealing he took his own life
TINA Malone has shared the heartbreaking final text from her late husband Paul after revealing he took his own life.
The Shameless actress opened up about her spouse’s tragic death this weekend, two months after his passing.
Tina, 61, told The Mirror: “It’s the first time I’ve said it and confirmed it. Paul did commit suicide. I believe in transparency.
“I’ll never get over it. I miss him so badly and I love him so much. One thing I know… he’s in a better place than here.”
Now the heartbroken star has revealed the final text she received from Paul, a former soldier.
In cruel twist, she only saw the message as police sat opposite her in the living room of her Liverpool home, having just told her Paul was dead.
She told The Mirror: “His last texts were sent at about 4am but I have an old phone and they didn’t come through straight away.
“When they finally arrived the police were already at my house breaking the news that he’d gone.”
Paul, who hadn’t come home the night before, wrote tenderly: “Tina, my amazing wife. The most amazing woman I’ve ever met, I love you unconditionally you gave us our beautiful daughter… I love you Flame more than you’ll ever know.”
Paul was only 41 when he passed away, having battled with PTSD from his experiences in combat with the 22nd Regiment of the Cheshires in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In a text meant for their 10-year-old daughter Flame, he wrote: “I am sorry I left you, you lit up my life every time I saw you. I’m sorry.”
Tina is now trying to channel her grief into a new charity set up in her husband’s name, Paul’s Flame.
She said: “It’s a very different charity with a board of 12 and it’s going to shine the light on people in poverty, in crisis, in need, who need cold, hard, cash.
“It’s the hardest time of my life, but I have to bring some positivity out of this.
“We have to talk more about suicide – that’s why I am speaking out now. It is the biggest cause of death in men under the age of 50 but there is still a stigma around it; there’s not enough support.
“But I don’t want Flame to be defined as the daughter of a man who took his own life, but as the daughter of a wonderful dad and a man who served his country.”
