Big Brother’s Pete Bennett slams Imogen Thomas accusing her of ‘milking’ his ex Nikki Grahame’s death
BIG Brother star Pete Bennett has hit back at co-star Imogen Thomas in a bitter row after Nikki Grahame’s death.
It comes as Imogen exclusively told The Sun that Big Brother winner Pete “betrayed” Nikki’s memory by making final texts to him public.
She accused Pete, 40, who briefly dated the late star, of seeking attention from her death.
Pete defended himself today and slammed Imogen’s claims, telling Entertainment Daily: “I am depressed to see the recent attack on me by Imogen in the press just coming up to the first anniversary of Nikki’s death.
“The accusations are simply untrue and poorly timed.
“Respectfully she should let me grieve, let Nikki rest in peace, and stop milking it.”
He added: “That evening I stayed all night with Nikki and looked after her till the next day.
“I have several witnesses, including my then-girlfriend. She was a mental health nurse who dealt with anorexia.
“I put up the picture of us to get funds for Nikki’s anorexia treatment. I used my platform to help spread the word as much as possible.”
And he accused Imogen of having an ulterior motive, while getting a little dig in.
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He said: “Imogen did little online apart from promoting McCain oven chips in her Instagram story.
“Imogen’s warped view on my visit to Nikki and ridiculous self-righteous plugging of ‘being her best friend’ to gain some popularity with Nikki fans is overwhelmingly painful to watch.
“Nikki’s passing was very traumatic for me, and I’ve been in therapy to try and recover. Only I know how much Nikki loved me and what it meant to her that I visited that night.”
Imogen told The Sun she felt Pete had “cruelly betrayed” Nikki’s memory after he shared her final text message to him and photos of them together.
Pete insisted Nikki, who died last April, had given him permission to post the image that showed her looking dangerously thin.
Imogen said: “He just rocked up at 1am with his girlfriend and took that picture. He only stayed for an hour.”
Imogen insisted she initially contacted Pete privately, politely asking him to take down the picture.
But she added: “He went off on one. I’ve got loads of photos of Nikki on my phone but I’d never post them online. It doesn’t even look like Nik.
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“He then decided to go on every TV show and talk about her and this picture was popping up everywhere.
“It wasn’t nice for her mum and the rest of her family and friends.”
It would have been Nikki’s 40th birthday later this month.
The pair had planned to return to Las Vegas to mark the occasion, but Imogen will now spend it alone in Mexico.
She said: “I just wanted to be away. Nik loved to travel so I’m going to sit on the beach with an espresso martini, which was her favourite cocktail. I know she will be looking down on me.”
Nikki had a lifelong battle with anorexia and in a recent interview her devastated mum Sue told how she was failed by the health service.
She said in an interview with New! magazine: “Unfortunately all those years ago GPs weren’t as knowledgeable about eating disorders and I was told it was just a phase she was going through. I knew from the very start that I was up against it.
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“I started to bring Nikki home from school at lunchtime so I could supervise her meals as from day one it was like she was an experienced anorexic. It was like it was always there waiting to come out and she knew all the tricks to avoid eating.
“I was so desperate for her to put on weight that I’d make her sit naked to eat her food otherwise spaghetti Bolognese would end up stuffed in her socks or hidden in her knickers.”
Sue revealed Nikki had home visits from social workers and health professionals, but her condition wasn’t taken seriously owing to a lack of understanding and “ignorance”.
Nikki Grahame: Who Is She? airs on Channel 4 at 9pm on Thursday.