TRIBUTES are pouring in for 'Room to Improve' star Michael Stokes, who has passed away aged just 15.
Michael captured Ireland's affection when he starred on the hit RTE series in 2016 after his teacher Ann Higgins and her husband Barry called on Dermot Bannon to help redesign their house in Malahide.
Bannon set out to help make the home wheelchair-friendly as Michael regularly stayed over before the couple eventually adopted him.
Michael - who was wheelchair bound - famously told Bannon to "go back to the drawing board" when the project hit a snag.
It's now been confirmed that the teenager died on Saturday, May 5.
It's understood that he passed away at Temple Street Children's Hospital in Dublin following "a tragic accident" at home.
Taking to Facebook after the sad news emerged, one friend wrote: "Sad news that Michael has passed on.
"Anyone who watched Michael with Dermot on Room to Improve could only be enraptured by Michael’s disarming charm and the love shared between him, Ann and Barry, as Dermot redesigned their house to accommodate Michael".
Another wrote: "Rest Easy Michael - you were an inspiration to all who watched and all who met you. So sad."
Michael also appeared on The Late Late Show earlier this year, telling viewers of his joy at being fostered by Ann and Barry.
"I knew Ann because she was my teacher and I met Barry at my communion party," he said.
"I have my own bed, I have my own desk. I love everything, everything is at my level."
Michael's funeral mass will take place on Wednesday, May 9 at Church of the Sacred Hearth, Seabury, Malahide.
The ceremony will be followed by burial in Dardistown Cemetery.
