Loose Women presenter Kaye Adams was close to tears as she delivered a message of support to former panellist Lisa Maxwell following the sudden death of her daughter Beau at the age of 27.
Adams, 63, was anchoring the ITV lunchtime chat show on Friday afternoon alongside Myleene Klass, Judi Love and Jane Moore when she addressed the news about Maxwell's daughter.
Emotional tribute on air
An emotional Adams said: "You may have already seen the devastating news about our former Loose Women Lisa Maxwell today. Lisa's daughter Beau has died suddenly at the age of 27."
Struggling to hold back tears, Adams, who is mother to daughters Charly, 23, and Bonnie, 18, added: "Beau was Lisa's only child, she had been studying in New York. There's nothing to say, the feeling of sadness is just overwhelming, we are sending all our love to Lisa, her husband Paul and all of their family and friends."
Beau's studies and tributes
Beau had been studying journalism at Columbia University in New York City, and news of her passing broke on Thursday night. In a statement, a spokesperson for the university said: "Columbia Journalism School mourns the loss of Beau Jessup, a student in our M.S. program. We join Jessup's family, friends and classmates in remembering her."
Dean of the journalism school Jelani Cobb paid tribute in an email to the university's team and students. "There is no easy way to share news of this nature and I recognize how painful it is to receive messages like this one," he wrote. "Any loss within our school family is difficult to process, and our thoughts and deepest condolences go out to Beau's family and friends during this heartbreaking time."
Career and family
Lisa Maxwell, best known for her role as Samantha Nixon in The Bill, was a regular panellist on Loose Women from 2009 until 2014. In recent years, she has appeared in numerous stage productions and featured in episodes of Casualty and The Madame Blanc Mysteries.
No cause of death has yet been confirmed for Beau. Maxwell had previously re-shared a photo of her daughter and her classmates taken in October 2024. With permission from her family, Columbia University re-shared an interview they did with Beau before her death, in which she spoke about her hopes for the future.
"I want to work as a journalist and writer, reporting on people, culture, and social questions with the rigor I'm learning at Columbia. I'm particularly drawn to journalism for its power and immediacy, while continuing to write for theatre when a subject benefits from being explored through a different form," she said.
