LONDON (AP):

Jade Goody, a dental assistant-turned-reality-TV star whose whirlwind journey from poverty to celebrity to tragedy became a national soap opera in Britain, died of cervical cancer yesterday at the age of 27.

Hers has been a life of praise and condemnation but she was celebrated in her last days as a forthright everywoman who bravely fought surgery and chemotherapy in the public eye.

Bald and frail, Goody married fiancé Jack Tweed last month in an elaborate event staged at an elegant countryside hotel outside London.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Sunday that Goody used her fame to help her two young sons and many women she did not know.

"She will be remembered fondly by all who knew her and her family can be extremely proud of the work she has done to raise awareness of cervical cancer," Brown said.