Steph McGovern recalls 'full on' stalker ordeal that left her 'freaked out'
Steph McGovern has recalled her "full on" stalker ordeal that left her "freaked out".
The television host joined ITV's This Morning on Tuesday (July 1), where she chatted with Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard about her upcoming debut novel, Deadline.
Set to hit shelves on Thursday (July 3), the crime thriller revolves around a broadcaster who discovers her earpiece has been compromised during a live interview.
After being told that her family has been abducted, the presenter must comply with the hijacker's demands.
Speaking about the inspiration for the book, Steph opened up about her own stalking ordeal, saying: "I have had a stalker and so that story is in there, and I've never really talked about it before, but that was quite fun and therapeutic writing it in a crime fiction book," reports Chronicle Live.
Ben responded to her revelation by saying, "So, your experience of having a stalker was really full on."
Steph then replied: "Weirdly in telly, when I found out I had a stalker and told my bosses, they were like, 'Oh yeah, kind of everyone gets a stalker at some point.'
"This was a guy who just used to turn up everywhere I went, and he wasn't horrible to me. He thought that he was in a relationship with me.
"So, he used to think when I said, 'Morning everyone' on the telly that I was talking directly to him. And he used to think when I put things on social media that that was me telling him where to meet him."
She continued: "So, he'd turn up and he'd say things to me like, 'Can I give you a lift home, Steph? I've got your favourite snacks'... But I also didn't want to be rude to him because I didn't know what was going on in his life."
Steph revealed that the situation escalated when her parents received an unexpected letter from the man, who asked for her hand in marriage.
"He had your dad's address as well?" an astonished Ben asked, to which Steph responded: "Well, that's what freaked me out because then at that point I was like, 'Woah, it's very different having someone be there at broadcasting things to then finding out my parents' address and writing to them.'
"That panicked me because I thought my mum and dad are gonna be dead worried here. So, that's when it all kicked in and BBC security did their thing."
Steph concluded: "That's the amazing thing in our careers. You take in so much, you meet such colourful characters, so it's been amazing to write about them."
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