Freddie Starr's loyal carer, 46, reveals he proposed to her before dying - but could not bring herself to say yes despite loving him and having his initials tattooed behind her ear Nelly Georgieva looked after the frail funnyman in his one-bed Spanish home In the wake of his death the heartbroken Bulgarian told of her affection for Starr Ms Georgieva first met Starr when he hired her to clean his Malaga apartmentBy Jack Elsom For Mailonline Published: 02:09 BST, 16 June 2019 | Updated: 02:10 BST, 16 June 2019 Viewcomments Freddie Starr's carer has revealed that she turned down his marriage proposal despite falling in love with the desperately ill comedian. Nelly Georgieva, 46, looked after the frail funnyman in his one-bed Spanish home on the Costa del Sol where the couple developed a romantic relationship. In the wake of his death last week, the heartbroken Bulgarian has spoken of her affection towards Starr, whose initials are even tattooed behind her ear. Nelly Georgieva, 46, looked after the frail funnyman in his one-bed Spanish home on the Costa del Sol where the couple developed a romantic bond In the wake of his death last week, the heartbroken Bulgarian has spoken of her affection towards Starr (pictured at his apartment), whose initials are even tattooed behind her ear 'I loved him and he loved me. We were best friends. We laughed together and we cried together,' she told the Sunday Mirror. Ms Georgieva first met Starr when he hired her to clean his Malaga home - a task the frail 76-year-old was unable to do. She said that Starr, who was reliant on an oxygen mask, was incredibly lonely and was not even in touch with his family. But after striking up a bond, the couple's relationship progressed very quickly and within months he had proposed to her. Ms Georgieva first met Starr when he hired her to clean his Malaga home - a task the frail 76-year-old was unable to do Ms Georgieva, discovered his body in his £180,000 Spanish home last week after the comedian suffered a heart attack Chain smoking Starr, who had five failed marriages, was said to have become a 'recluse' in recent months following years of ill health, and was rarely seen by neighbours in his residential complex (pictured) Ms Georgieva said: 'After four months he asked me to marry him. He was scared I'd leave him. I said I'd been married once and didn't want to again. He'd say, "Where were you 15 years ago?". 'He loved me but there was nothing sexual. He would hug and kiss my hand but never tried anything else.' Last week she visited Liverpool - where Starr had always promised to show her - for her dead partner's funeral. Ms Georgieva, who found the body of the legendary comedian slumped on the floor of his apartment, has claimed Starr was so broke that he stopped paying his electricity bill for three years and that she had to pay off the 2,000 euro charge. She said that his 60-a-day cigarette habit has not helped, even joking to him hours before he died 'you need to quit or it’ll kill you'. Starr, who had five failed marriages, shot to TV super-stardom in the 1970s when his Opportunity Knocks show aired. Last week Ms Georgieva visited Liverpool - where Starr had always promised to show her - for her dead partner's funeral A post-mortem has revealed that comedian Freddie Starr died from a heart attack. He posted a picture on Facebook in January alongside the caption 'Diet going well!' Read more: Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site dailymail and under his responsibility