Fifi Geldof honours Peaches, ‘My beautiful baby sister’

Fifi Geldof has paid tribute to her younger sister Peaches, who died on Monday.

In a message on her Instagram page yesterday morning, the 31-year-old wrote: “My beautiful baby sister . . . Gone but never forgotten. I love you, Peaches x.” The note was alongside a picture of the two sisters pulling faces in a garden when they were young girls.

A postmortem on Peaches Geldof, 25, will be carried out in the coming days, Kent police said yesterday, as detectives continue to investigate the “unexplained” fatality at her home.

Police said Geldof was pronounced dead at her house, after they were called there at 1.35pm on Monday.

“The death is being treated as a non-suspicious, but an unexplained sudden death,” a police spokesman said. “Officers are working to establish the circumstances and will be compiling a report of their findings for the coroner.”

Kent police declined to confirm or deny reports that no drugs or suicide note were found at the home, where detectives were continuing their inquiries yesterday.

Geldof was married to the musician Thomas Cohen and they had two sons: Astala, who is almost two, and 11-month-old Phaedra.

Her former publicist Ray Levine said he was "beyond saddened" by her death. "She was always entertaining. Very, very headstrong which made her quite difficult to look after because she wouldn't follow advice," he told the Sun . "She seemed to be heading off track but managed to pull herself back. Peaches lived with a deep sadness from childhood."

Her mother, Paula Yates, died from an accidental heroin overdose in 2000 when Peaches was 11. Peaches' transformation from wild child to devoted mother seemed to have been sealed when Mother & Baby magazine announced in February that she was to be its new columnist, writing about juggling parenting, work and family.

A tribute posted online by the publication read: “We are extremely saddened at the tragic news that Peaches Geldof has died. Our hearts and sympathies are with her family and two little boys.”

On Monday Peaches’ father Bob issued a statement from the family describing them as “beyond pain”.

Her husband pledged to bring up their sons “with their mother in their hearts every day. We shall love her forever.”

The Irish president, Michael D Higgins, on his State visit to Britain, during which he was due to meet Bob Geldof, said his and his wife's thoughts were with the family. "I extend my deepest sympathies to Bob Geldof and his family on the sudden and untimely death of his daughter Peaches. This is such a difficult cross to bear for any family and all of our thoughts are with Peaches' family and friends at this time."
– (Guardian service)