Coronation Street has teamed up with the Suzy Lamplugh Trust for its terrifying stalking storyline.
Viewers have seen barmaid Daisy Midgeley’s increasing fear as she is hounded by Justin who has become obsessed after a chance meeting.
He has sent flowers and chocolates, bombarded her with texts, cyberstalked her and turned up unannounced at a wedding fair she was attending.
The Suzy Lamplugh Trust has worked with scriptwriters to help make the storyline more accurate.
Saskia Garner from the anti-stalking charity said: “We’ve given our insight from the experiences of the victims we speak to every day to shape the way the story has gone.” In upcoming episodes Daisy is frustrated after police play down her ordeal.
Actress Charlotte Jordan, 27, who plays Daisy in the ITV soap, said: “She feels isolated and decides to take things into her own hands and it escalates very quickly. She’s not a violent person, but she punches Justin.”
It is then Daisy who is asked to attend the police station, after Justin – played by Andrew Still – accuses her of assault. Charlotte said: “He’s what is known as an intimacy-seeking stalker. He fully believes they’re in a relationship and that they’re in love and she starts to get extremely scared.
“She’s a confident character, but what you see is this guy take her power from her and destroy everything that is her. You’ll see her slowly crumble and get smaller and I don’t think she’ll ever be the same.”
Actor Andrew, 29, said the storyline will get even darker as his character stops at nothing to get his way. He said: “He has this delusional belief that they’re going to run off together. He’s laser-focused, I think he’ll go to whatever lengths he feels necessary.”
The Suzy Lamplugh Trust was founded in 1986 after the disappearance of estate agent Suzy Lamplugh, who went to meet a client and never returned.
She was never found and evidence suggested she may have been targeted by a stalker.
Ms Garner said: “It’s so important programmes like Coronation Street highlight the impact of stalking.
“One in five women and one in 10 men experience stalking. Victims tell us it’s a crime of psychological terror. You’re not safe in your own home, on your phone – stalking infiltrates every aspect of a person’s life.”
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