Ben Duncan, who was a friend of Prince William and Kate Middleton, has died at the age of 45 after falling from the roof of a hotel in London, where he was a guest.(Image: Getty Images)

A close friend of Prince William and former Big Brother contestant has died tragically after plunging 100 feet from a hotel rooftop in West London. Ben Duncan, who became acquainted with the prince and his wife, Kate, during their time at St Andrew’s University, was reportedly part of their ‘inner circle’.

Duncan, aged 45, died on October 30 following a fall from the seven-storey Trafalgar St James hotel in the West End. Metropolitan Police officers were called to the scene after receiving reports of a ‘man on the roof’.

However, Duncan is believed to have fallen from the rooftop bar, which features tall plastic safety screens around its perimeter, before police arrived.

A spokesperson confirmed: “Officers responded to concerns for a man on the roof of a building in Cockspur Street, Westminster at 23:02 hours on Thursday, 30 October. The man sadly fell from height.

“Despite the best efforts from the London Ambulance service, he was sadly pronounced dead at the scene. His death is unexpected but non-suspicious,” reports the Mirror.

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A London Ambulance service spokesperson also confirmed they attended the incident but were unable to save Duncan. “We were called at 10:59pm on Thursday 30 October to reports of an incident on Spring Gardens, City of Westminster.

“We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an incident response officer, paramedics in fast response cars and paramedics from our hazardous area response team. We also dispatched a trauma team in a car from London’s Air Ambulance. Very sadly, despite the best efforts of our crews, a man was pronounced dead at the scene.”

Duncan became recognised as a housemate on Big Brother during series 11. He departed on day 52, with the series eventually won by Josie Gibson.

His television appearances also included Come Dine With Me, Ladette to Lady and Celebrity Coach Trip.

Beyond his Royal connections, Duncan maintained friendships with Lord Peter Mandelson, Michael Portillo and designer Nicky Haslam. A friend, broadcaster Mike Hollingsworth, shared a heartfelt tribute to the Big Brother star.

.The Prince and Princess of Wales during a visit to Co. Armagh. (Image: PA).He fell from the roof of the Trafalgar St James. (Image: Booking.com)

In a Facebook post, he wrote: “My dear, dear friend Benjamin (Ben) Duncan has left us.

“He lived life as Peter Pan – the boy who never grew up. He will be sorely missed by his many, many friends, who grew to love his charm, his wit, his infectious laugh and his innate sense of style. The world is a poorer place for his passing. RIP Benji.”

Another friend, speaking to the Daily Mail on condition of anonymity, shared: “Ben was always the life and soul of the party. Although he appeared on reality TV shows, Ben’s true passions were politics and music. In recent years, he had become more reclusive – and had struggled with insomnia. It’s truly devastating that he’s gone so soon.”

Rewinding to 2010, before Prince William and Kate tied the knot, Duncan revealed what it was like being their mate. He confessed that he was among the first to twig that there was a spark between the pair.

“Because we’d had Will and Kate in our midst we had royal protection officers swarming the place. We knew that they had hit it off and we knew that something was happening, but they were just left alone to get on with it.”

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