Emmerdale's Lisa Riley 'struggles' to film after Strictly star Robin Windsor's death

Former Strictly Come Dancing star Lisa Riley has opened up about her grief over the death of her close friend Robin Windsor.

The 47-year-old actress, who partnered with pro-dancer Windsor on the BBC show in 2012, has shared her struggles after his unexpected passing in February.

Windsor, aged 44, was found dead in a London hotel earlier this year - the cause of death is yet to be disclosed.

Speaking of her mother, who died from breast cancer in 2012, Riley added of Windsor: "To then lose my best friend as well… It was like, ‘Why does God take the best?’"

The soap star, who has been on Emmerdale for nearly 30 years, admitted that being on set has been particularly challenging in recent months.

"Robin was such a big part of my life,” she said. “There have been days when I didn’t want to go in front of the camera. I had to paint Mandy Dingle on… put the wig and lashes on and go out there. But it’s so painful."

Over the weekend, Lisa presented the Posthumous Award at the British LGBT Awards to Windsor’s family on his behalf and said in his tribute: "I wish he was here, he should be on my arm covered in sparkles and having a ball, but the energy he had is imprinted on my heart. He would be shining down and laughing at us.

"His vibrancy, energy, and zest for life was out there for everyone to see. He wasn’t a hidden gay man, he was a proud, proud gay man."

Following Windsor’s death, his family issued a statement thanking everyone for their love and support while requesting privacy to grieve.

The stated: "We would like to thank everyone for the outpouring of love and celebration of our beloved Robin. While we understand that there is a huge public and media interest around his passing, we as a family need time to process our shock and grief.

"We ask for the needs of our family and friends to be taken into consideration and for our privacy to be respected at this difficult time."