Ask around your female friends and the chances are someone you know will have been stalked at some point. It’s a crime that blights the lives of more than 1.5 million people every year – mainly women. But while cases are on the rise across Britain, according to official figures, few understand the devastating effects on the victims. Worse, say campaigners, the law is not doing enough to help.
‘He’d hide in the bushes, staring in’
Former ITV newsreader and podcast host Isla Traquair, 43, who has campaigned to raise awareness of the devastating impact of stalking, explains how her life was ripped apart by neighbour Jonathan Barrett two years ago.
When I bought my dream home in the idyllic Cotswold countryside in autumn 2020, I planned to write and work in a peaceful environment. But peace was the last thing I experienced in that house.
The nightmare started before I even had the house keys. I asked the departing owner’s permission to park outside so I could take my disabled mum for a walk. We returned to find a van had blocked
