Monday, March 23, 2009
LONDON (AP) — Jade Goody’s family asks for “privacy at last” after the death at 27 of the brash former dental assistant who turned her tumultuous life and struggle with cervical cancer into a one-woman reality show.
Mocked as a slob, then celebrated as an everywoman, Goody lived one of the world’s most public lives, with cameras capturing everything from her racial slurs to her cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy.
Goody gained fame in 2002 at age 21 when she joined the British version of the reality television show “Big Brother,” in which contestants live together for weeks and are constantly filmed. She became a highly divisive star and something of a national touchstone who sparked debate about race, class and celebrity.
During filming of an Indian version of “Celebrity Big Brother” in the summer of 2008, Goody received a diagnosis of cervical cancer by telephone from a doctor in Britain. The camera captured the deeply personal moment, which was shown repeatedly on TV.
The progress of her illness was chronicled in detail in the tabloid press and weekly magazines. She underwent surgery and chemotherapy in the public eye — filming part of the experience.
Bald and frail, Goody married fianc Jack Tweed last month in an elaborate event staged at an elegant countryside hotel outside London.
The wedding was shown on television and the photos were sold, prompting criticism.