Adam Faith 'was with young lover before he died'

Pop icon Adam Faith had a young lover in his hotel room when he suffered a fatal heart attack, it was claimed today.

Tanya Arpino, 24, had been waiting for the married veteran heartthrob to return after a stage show on March 8.

She told how she raised the alarm, then watched as medics battled in vain to save the 62-year-old.

She told The Sun: “It was like being in a horror movie. I can’t explain what it was like seeing the person you love die in front of you.”

Faith lived in Tudeley, Kent, with his wife Jackie. They were married for 36 years.

He met Miss Arpino five years ago when she was working as a waitress, her father Francesco Arpino said today.

She said she had no comment to make today as she left her home, where she lives with her millionaire father.

But Mr Arpino, a 54-year-old retired investment banker, said: “She was very fond of him because he was absolutely charming and he was very fond of Tanya, a total gentleman, very old school.

“He would open doors for her, bring her home at a decent time. He treated her so well. He was a fine gentleman. I think everyone who met him thought he was absolutely charming.”

He explained how Faith had wanted his daughter to work with him on his 1999 digital televison venture The Money Channel, which closed down just three years later, reportedly losing £32 million and leaving the singer bankrupt.

“They met five years ago. I was out in the garden when he came to collect her. He came to take her out,” said Mr Arpino.

“I think the idea was he wanted her to run his green room (hospitality room) for the Money Channel, meeting the guests, looking after them.

“When he saw her in this restaurant, he obviously had that in mind for his future plans. She worked for the Money Channel for two years.”

He added: “She’s done nothing wrong. It’s not a crime.”

Faith suffered a massive heart attack at his hotel in Stoke-on-Trent after performing in the play Love And Marriage at the city’s Regent Theatre in March this year.

He was taken to hospital where doctors fought in vain to resuscitate the actor, who had a history of heart trouble.

During the 1960s, Faith was one of Britain’s top three pop stars alongside Cliff Richard and Billy Fury, with chart hits including number one singles What Do You Want and Poor Me.

In the 70s he starred as the chirpy Cockney, just out of prison, in the classic television series Budgie, written by Keith Waterhouse.

Faith moved away from showbiz in the early 80s, becoming a financial investments adviser.

In 1986, he had open heart surgery after he was found to have seriously blocked arteries.

Faith later took up financial journalism, with a regular column for the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday.