Jade Goody Dies

British reality star Jade Goody, 27, passed away at 3:14 am in her sleep.

Jade shot to fame in 2002 after appearing on the British version of Big Brother.

Initially ridiculed for her apparent lack of education -- she thought Saddam Hussein was a boxer and a ferret was a bird -- and criticized for her behavior towards fellow competitors, she gradually won the public over with a straight-talking style. She was accused of making racist comments and bullying her housemate. More than 50,000 complaints were received.

It was during an appearance on an Indian version of Big Brother last August that she learned that she had cervical cancer. She dropped out of the show to return to Britain for treatment and later learned the cancer was terminal.

Janes's decision to die in the public eye was in order to earn as much money as possible for her two sons, Bobby and Freddie. OK! magazine bought the rights to her story for a reported $970,000. And last Tuesday the magazine published a memorial issue with a coverline announcing "Jady Goody, 1981-2009." A book, chronicling her last few months of life, will be available in a few months.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in a statement Sunday: "I was deeply saddened to hear the news of Jade Goody's death. She was a courageous woman both in life and death and the whole country have admired her determination to provide a bright future for her children."

Jane's husband, Jack Tweed, who she married last month in a lavish wedding ceremony, was at her bedside when she died, Clifford said.