Coronation Street's Nicola Thorp recalls terrifying moment her 'grim reaper' stalker was 'close enough to smell her' during two-year ordeal
The actress, 36, who played Nicola Rubinstein in the soap, was stalked and terrorised for two years between 2018 and 2020 by a man who called himself her 'personal grim reaper'.
He used 27 different online aliases to contact Nicola, making sickening threats to choke and rape her.
However, even after his arrest police refused to reveal his identity, leaving Nicola feeling 'powerless' until she came face-to-face with him in court.
Her stalker, schizophrenic Ravinderjit Dhillon was finally sentenced to 30 months in jail at Snaresbrook Crown Court in east London back in December 2023.
From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new Showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop.
Speaking in a new interview with The Sun, Nicola explained: 'To this day, I don't know if I was being stalked in real life, there were messages that he sent saying that he was following me on the Tube and had got close enough to smell me.
'I felt powerless because the police wouldn't tell me who he was. That's when I got really scared because he knew I'd reported him.'
She recalled how he had sent her messages that included details about her home which made her 'really concerned.'
Recounting one message, Nicola said: 'I remember one in particular saying, "I'm your Grim Reaper. I'm never going to leave you", And that really chilled me.'
She revealed that she still doesn't know what sparked the ordeal or how it began, but the first contact she's aware of was when the stalker sent her a photograph of his genitalia.
As a women's rights campaigner, Nicola keeps her direct messages open to the public in case anyone messages her for help.
Elsewhere in the interview, the actress revealed that the first time she ever saw her stalker face-to-face was when they appeared in court together and she was behind him in the security queue.
Nicola faced her stalker, schizophrenic Ravinderjit Dhillon at Snaresbrook Crown Court in east London back in December 2023 with her fiancé Nikesh Patel by her side - before he was sentenced to 30 months in jail.
In an emotional witness statement, the actress told of her paranoia as the stalker referred to himself as the 'Grim Reaper' as he used 25 different identities to target her and made sickening threats to choke and rape her.
'I lived in fear that this anonymous man who had hounded me for years was in fact someone I knew,' Ms Thorp told the court, as reported by The Sun.
'If you don't know who the person behind the keyboard is, he becomes everyone you meet and everyone you've ever met.
'All that time he knew exactly who I was and I knew nothing of him.
'When I was shown a photo of him it meant I had some freedom back, and only the freedom to run away if I saw him in the street.'
She said that she had grown terrified about what her 'committed' stalker would do as she starred in a play last April - realising that he would know exactly where she would be.
And her terror did not end when Dhillon was arrested - as she recalled that an abuser's victims are most at risk when their tormentor is 'cornered'.
Dhillon began his warped campaign when he sent her an intimate photo of himself in October 2018.
Sentencing Dhillon, Judge Rosa Dean said that she was 'quite sure' he had targeted Ms Thorp because of her celebrity alongside her 'determination to call out abusive and misogynistic behaviour'.
She called the messages he sent to Ms Thorp 'deeply offensive and very violent' - saying they caused his victim to live 'in constant fear'.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
9 minutes ago
- The Independent
The NHS change that could prevent 6,500 cancer cases each year
A new study suggests that thousands of breast cancer cases could be prevented annually in the UK by expanding eligibility for risk-reducing mastectomies (RRM). The research indicates that approximately 6,500 cases could be averted each year if RRM was more widely adopted beyond current genetic predispositions. Currently, RRM is primarily offered to women with BRCA1, BRCA2, or PALB2 genes, but the study proposes including those with other high-risk genes like ATM and CHEK2. The study also highlights that a combination of factors, including family history, parity, breastfeeding, and mammogram density, should be considered for RRM eligibility. Researchers from Queen Mary University of London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found RRM to be cost-effective for women aged 30-55 with a lifetime breast cancer risk of 35 per cent or more.
The Independent
9 minutes ago
- The Independent
Sixteen arrested after protest outside migrant hotel in Epping
Police have arrested 16 people after a protest outside a migrant hotel last week. Essex Police said a small number of people had used a peaceful demonstration last Thursday as cover to commit violent disorder and criminal damage. The protest, outside the Bell Hotel in Epping, began peacefully but escalated into what officers described as 'scattered incidents of violence' targeting police and property. Eight officers were injured and a number of police vehicles were damaged as missiles were thrown. Six people have been charged, including Kenneth Blissett, 34, of Long Banks, Harlow, Essex, who was charged on Thursday with theft of police equipment and possession of an offensive weapon. He remains on bail and will appear at Colchester Magistrates' Court on September 30. Another man in his 20s was detained at an address in Harlow at about 5.45pm on Wednesday on suspicion of violent disorder. He remains in custody for questioning and police say they have seized evidence from the scene. Officers are also appealing for information about two men they want to speak to in connection with the violence. Martin Peagram, 33, who has links to Stansted, Essex, is described as 6ft, of slim build, with short brown hair and facial stubble. Philip Curson, 52, who has no fixed address, is 5ft 8in, stocky, with short brown hair and full tattoo sleeves on both arms, as well as tattoos on his neck. Essex Police said they are no longer seeking Shaun Thompson, 37, who was arrested on suspicion of violent disorder and remains in custody. Assistant Chief Constable Stuart Hooper said: 'We'd promised that we'd continue our investigations into the unacceptable actions of a small number of people who chose to take advantage of peaceful protest to try to cause harm to people in Epping or to property. 'We've been analysing footage and we have investigators and trained detectives working on this operation. 'We are identifying suspects and there will be more arrests in the coming days. 'Put simply, if you turn up to try to cause trouble, you won't get away with it.' Detectives have also released body-worn video showing one of the arrests. The latest developments come as police are braced for further protests, and the Government and law enforcement have vowed to act swiftly if unrest spreads. The Epping protest was sparked by the charging of asylum-seeker Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, with sexual assault after he allegedly attempted to kiss a 14-year-old girl. He denied the charge at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court and will stand trial in August. The protest has drawn national attention and sparked a political row, with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage calling for Essex Police Chief Constable Ben-Julian Harrington to resign over claims that officers transported left-wing protesters to the scene, claims the chief constable has denied.
The Independent
9 minutes ago
- The Independent
Baby murdered by his father in hospital was ‘failed in life'
A two-week-old baby who was 'brutally murdered' by his father was 'failed in life', the officer who led the investigation has said. Brendon Staddon suffered catastrophic injuries at the hands of his father, Daniel Gunter, 27, just weeks after he was born, with multiple broken limbs and his skull crushed. Speaking with the PA news agency, Chief Inspector Nadine Partridge, of the major crime investigation team at Avon and Somerset Police, said Brendon had been failed in life and 'the only way not to fail him in death is to get justice for what's happened to him'. She described Brendon's mother, Sophie Staddon, 21, who was cleared of causing or allowing the death of a child, as a 'vulnerable young girl' who was controlled by Gunter. Brendon, who was born prematurely at 33 weeks, was found in his hospital cot at the Yeovil District Hospital in Somerset on March 5 last year. While doctors attempted to resuscitate him, Brendon's parents went outside for a cigarette. 'Brendon Staddon was born at just 33 weeks' gestation at Yeovil District Hospital,' Ms Partridge said. 'He lived only two short weeks when he was brutally murdered by his dad, Daniel Gunter, in the hospital. The injuries he sustained were catastrophic. 'He had a shattered skull, he had a broken neck, multiple broken limbs and extensive bruising to his limbs and torso.' She added: 'The extensive injuries caused are something I've never seen before in my 22 years as a detective. 'The brutality of the murder – and to such a young, vulnerable, tiny baby – is not something, thankfully, that happens all too often.' She described Gunter as 'very quick to anger', and controlling and coercive towards his partner. Multiple people have spoken of how he would become violent when frustrated, throwing things. After the birth of his son, Gunter would 'blatantly ignore' the advice of medical staff, causing Brendon distress by jiggling and poking him. 'Despite multiple times being told this, he ignored it, thinking that he knew best,' Ms Partridge said. 'He would dictate what (Staddon) ate, when she smoked, who she spoke to, where she stayed. 'After Brendon was born, social services offered Sophie a placement in a mother and baby unit and, as such, Daniel would not be welcome there and would lose control over Sophie and Brendon. She refused to take up that support.' The officer said the parents had shown little emotion during the trial, but Staddon was visibly distressed when she alerted nursing staff at the hospital that Brendon was cold. 'She was quite visibly upset at that point, bent over hysterically crying in the cot space next to where Brendon lay,' she said. 'He was swiftly taken into the resuscitation room, and after a few minutes, both of them left the unit to go outside. 'We can see that on arrest, on the bodyworn footage, that Sophie is quite visibly upset, and she's crying about her baby being dead.' Ms Partridge thanked the medical staff at the hospital for their work. 'They did everything they could to save Brendon. 'Unfortunately, his injuries were too severe, and the small comfort I can take is that he wouldn't have suffered for long. 'My thoughts are that Brendon was failed in life, and the only way not to fail him in death is to get justice for what's happened to him.' A child safeguarding and practice review will be held to examine whether there were any missed opportunities to save Brendon and to identify lessons that can be learned.
