BBC announces Chloe Ayling: My Unbelievable Kidnapping a new documentary series for BBC Three and iPlayer, made by BBC Studios
Giving her first documentary interview since her abductors' conviction, Chloe Ayling revisits the story of her time in captivity and tries to come to terms with what took place, the media reaction and why many people refused to believe her.
In the summer of 2017, it was reported that twenty-year-old glamour model, Chloe Ayling, had been kidnapped in Italy by an International criminal gang known as Black Death. Turning up for what she believed to be a photoshoot in Milan, Chloe was grabbed from behind, drugged and bundled into a bag before being taken to a remote farmhouse and handcuffed to a chest of drawers. There, she was told she had six days before she would be sold as sex slave as part of a dark web auction. Despite the terrifying circumstances, Chloe was able to convince her captors to let her walk free and into the hands of the local authorities.
However, in the immediate aftermath, with the Italian police investigation still ongoing, Chloe became the subject of global media speculation. Were her abductors really part of a sinister sex slavery ring? How did she persuade them to let her go? And why did Chloe seem so unaffected by what she'd been through? Then, ahead of the court case, as the perpetrators' own version of events was reported, the public were left questioning whether the crime was in fact a publicity stunt to further Chloe's modelling career. Her kidnapper, Lukasz Herba and his brother Michal Herba were subsequently found guilty by an Italian court and jailed.
Eight years on, Chloe Ayling now wants to challenge any remaining doubters and finally put the past behind her. Through probing interviews with those involved, the series separates fact from perception and looks at the press coverage of this extraordinary case, the public reaction and asks how a survivor became a suspect.
Chloe Ayling says: 'I'm delighted BBC Studios are telling my story - not only in my own words, but also through the voices of those directly involved. For years, people have doubted me, often because they don't understand what really happened — or who I am. I think this documentary truly unravels and dives deep into who I am, the events of the kidnapping, as well as the intense media aftermath that tried to define me. I think people will finally see through the headlines.'
Katharine Patrick, Executive Producer says: 'This series enables Chloe to unpack the truth of what happened to her eight years ago, allowing her to process the ordeal she's been through in an honest and unflinching way, and make sense of the person she is now as a result.'
Clare Sillery, Head of Commissioning, Documentaries, says: 'In Chloe's own words, this documentary series will explore what it means to be a victim, who becomes the focus of nationwide speculation and is still living with people's disbelief, eight years later."
Fiona Campbell, Controller for Youth Audiences says: 'Chloe presents a brave and compelling perspective of her highly publicised case through this documentary which I hope will provide viewers with a new understanding of the real person behind the headlines.'
Chloe Ayling: My Unbelievable Kidnapping is a three-part series for BBC Three and iPlayer made by BBC Studios Documentary Unit. The series is commissioned by Clare Sillery, Head of Commissioning, BBC Documentaries and Fiona Campbell, Controller for Youth Audiences, the Commissioning Editor is Tom Pullen. Executive Producer is Katharine Patrick; the Edit Executive Producer is Magnus Temple and Series Editor is Vivienne Perry. The series is directed by Stuart Bernard and Miles Bladen-Ryall and will be distributed internationally by BBC Studios.
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