A Turkish soap star has died just one day after celebrating her 35th birthday. Ece İrtem, best known for playing Işıl in the popular Turkish TV series Cranberry Sorbet, collapsed at home but could not be saved.

Her lawyer, Uğur Gökkoyun, confirmed that the actress died at around midday on Monday, with her devastated mother by her side. “The incident occurred at her home while she was with her mother”, he said, adding “initial findings suggest she died due to a heart attack”. The exact cause of death has not yet been made public. The legal expert also dispelled rumours of her using alcohol and anti-depressants in the run up to her death, as he suggested that she may have been scratched by an infected monkey in Thailand.

Gökkoyun said that his client had been travelling in Thailand shortly before her death – and possibly caught a disease from a wild chimp.

However, infectious disease expert Dr Mehmet Ceyhan shut down the claims and said other medical causes seemed a more likely explanation.

İrtem, who also featured in rom-com Mr Wrong and several historical dramas, had posted on social media just a day earlier as she celebrated her birthday. She thanked fans for their sweet birthday wishes.

Now the tributes have come pouring in. Caglar Kuru, a friend from university, said: "I cannot find the words. She was a person whose heart was full of love, energy and happiness. Living through this pain is truly very sad."

He also said Irtem had plans for new projects and was looking ahead to her career with motivation.

The actress has been buried at the Yenikoy Cemetery in her hometown province of Aydin. However, her burial caused outrage as some fans were slammed for being "disrespectful".

Several people were spotted filming and taking photos of the coffin. Footage of the moment went viral on social media and the fans were criticised for the way that they were acting towards the grieving family.

Her mother reportedly became unwell during the funeral, while her father stayed beside his daughter's coffin throughout the ceremony.

This is a breaking live TV story, the Showbiz Express.co.uk team will be updating this story with the latest information as soon as we receive it. For further updates, please refresh the page

Get all the very best news, pictures, opinion and video on your favourite TV shows by following Express.co.uk every time you see our name.

You can also sign up for Twitter alerts for breaking news and all the latest updates by following @‌Daily_Express, or for the latest TV and showbiz news, follow @‌expressceleb

Keep up-to-date with your must-see TV stories, features, videos and pictures throughout the day by following us on Facebook at