BBC Breakfast's Louise Minchin talks stalker horror and recalls 'graphic' threats

Claire Spurgin, from Essex, posted a picture of herself on a night out with a friend for her 38,200 Instagram followers.She smiled widely and struck a pose in a halter-neck dress with strappy heels – but her cheerful exterior isn't everything that it seems.The 27-year-old has been battling psoriasis, an autoimmune skin condition, since 2017.During flare-ups, uncomfortable dry patches and sore dots appear across her skin and face.And even when she thinks her psoriasis has "calmed down" there are obstacles she has to overcome.Claire captioned the image: "What you see vs.

Judd Trump has sensationally revealed that he is considering taking an extended break from snooker next season.A mentally drained Juddernaut admits that he is not enjoying the game – and that even the looming Betfred World Championship feels like a chore.The former world champion enjoyed spectacular success for three seasons in a row that brought him 14 ranking titles and a Masters crown.By most players’ standards the current season, yielding wins for the 32-year-old at the Champions of Champions and the Turkish Masters, would be an excellent return.But for world No3 Trump, whose long-time excellent level of play has dipped this term, his own relative loss of form and a stop-start calendar with gaps have been a real challenge.And he is even contemplating taking a leaf out of Ronnie O’Sullivan’s book in taking a whole season out of the sport.Six-time world champion O’Sullivan sat out almost the entire 2012-13 season – but still came back at the Crucible to gloriously claim a fifth world crown.Trump, who lost to Belgium’s Luca Brecel in the quarter-finals at this week’s Tour Championship, said: “My main aim in snooker always is to enjoy it, and at the moment I am not.“So whether I have to start missing more events or even do what Ronnie did and miss a season out, I don’t know.“I certainly aim to have a couple of holidays, but the calendar doesn’t look great for the first few months of next season at the moment. There are not a lot of events to play in.Should Judd Trump take a break from snooker? Let us know in the comments section below.“So maybe it is the best chance or time I will get to take a little break out of the game.

Russian forces are carrying out a withdrawal from northern Ukraine, mining homes, equipment and even corpses near Kyiv, according to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.Evacuating from Ukraine in a way that Zelenskyy describes as "slow but noticeable", he said the Russians are causing a "complete disaster" for all affected areas with their actions, adding "There are a lot of trip wires, a lot of other dangers."Mr Zelenskyy also said that Ukrainians should wait until they've assured that all mines have been cleared and that the danger of shelling has passed, before getting on with their normal lives. The damage to Ukraine’s infrastructure has been massive, with the US estimating that Russia's invasion of Ukraine has already caused damage worth more than $100bn (£76 billion) to properties in Ukraine.The latest update from the capital's council has noted that 154 residential buildings, 20 private estates, 27 pre-schools and 44 schools in Kyiv had been damaged by Russian shelling.

Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith has shared a poignant video paying tribute to his late friend and colleague, Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins, who died last month at age 50.The two-minute video comprises a handful of humorous interactions between the pair, interview snippets and performance clips, with the Foo Fighters song ‘My Hero’ laid overtop. It was put together by Daniel Catullo, who in 2017 helmed the PBS series Foo Fighters At The Acropolis, which Smith hosted.Opening the video is a snippet of Smith saying in an old interview: “Taylor’s my good buddy, who I’ve known forever.” It ends with a line from Smith’s speech at the Chili Peppers’ Hollywood Walk Of Fame induction ceremony – which took place on Thursday (March 31) – where he said: “I have to give a shoutout to my brother Taylor Hawkins.

The Twilight Sad paid tribute to the late Scott Hutchison at their show in Glasgow last night (Friday April 1) by covering Frightened Rabbit‘s ‘Keep Yourself Warm’ with the band’s drummer.Yesterday, the Scottish band announced that their two hometown gigs at the Glasgow Barrowland Ballroom would see them joined by Frightened Rabbit’s drummer, Scott’s brother Grant Hutchison. Mogwai’s Alex Mackay also stepped in for Twilight Sad guitarist Andy MacFarlane, who was unable to perform “due to personal reasons”.The band have regularly covered ‘Keep Yourself Warm’ at shows since their close friend Hutchison took his own life in 2018.

BBC Breakfast host Louise Minchin sent a sweet message to her former co-worker Dr Sian Williams on social media. Louise, 53, urged Sian to "excel" as the TV star stepped down from her presenting role on 5 News earlier this week.Sian, 57, announced to her fans that she would be stepping down from 5 News in the spring, leaving many followers upset.The TV star posted: "Feels odd to dip into your timeline, but a bit of personal news.

@WeatherNick xxx."Nick replied, with a short quip about “working next to a jukebox".He said: “If I wanted to work next to a jukebox…” followed by a red love heart. @Johnofladublin responded to Nick’s reply with: “Sounds like you’re in for an experience quite like no other this morning Nick! “Would you do requests Carol?” Carol then responded with a series of laughing emojis. The tweet and its responses were in full view of Carol’s 219,600 followers. Other fans were quick to jump on to the tweet and offer their thoughts, too. @Joursans wrote: “That's not so bad. “The other week I had the theme from the Muppet Show stuck in my head - so embarrassing!”Similarly, @Kelbacon penned: “Morning! Nicer than the one I've had stuck in my head for DAYS. “It's the one that goes, 'now I'm 60 years old'. I don't even know who sings it! What a dirge.” @Pete_Yeates penned: “Good morning Carol it's lovely to see on this morning just a shame that the weather not so nice for the weekend x.” @Delroydr said: “No worries.

Louise Minchin, 53, and her 20-year-old daughter, Mia, have spoken out about the former BBC Breakfast presenter's stalking hell.The pair had been terrorised by a man who bombarded them with online abuse and knew where they lived.The perpetrator, Carl Davies, 44, ex-boyfriend of Girls Aloud star Nicola Roberts, was jailed in December, but the ordeal has left the mother and daughter duo emotionally scarred.Discussing the traumatic experience on ITV Tonight’s, Louise Minchin: The Truth About Stalking, the journalist said that her stalking ordeal has changed her and husband David Minchin's family profoundly.As she and Mia discussed their experience, the latter confessed: “When I’m walking, I am very conscious of who is behind me.“I especially don’t have my headphones in if it is dark and there is no one else around.”When asked if she noticed anything different about her mum, Mia said: “You are much more, kind of, on it when it comes to where I am.“You have got my location constantly now, you are constantly checking where I am, which I don’t mind because you can’t tell me off for where I am, anymore.”Louise laughed: “You are 20!”Earlier in the documentary, which aired on Thursday, the pair recalled exactly what their stalker had put them through.Mia said: “I’m logged into mum's Instagram account and suddenly loads of messages started coming.They were all kind of just really offensive, calling us not very nice names and then they got much more graphic.“It was the kind of actions that he wanted to do against me and mum, which got really personal and they weren't nice to read at all.“I was kind of terrified, all kinds of shaking. I think my heart was beating really fast.

Louise Minchin has revealed that she and her daughter Mia were both victims of a "terrifying" stalking incident on her new ITV documentary.The former BBC Breakfast star, 53, and her 20-year-old daughter explained that the ordeal began over Instagram with a barrage of messages from someone hiding behind a fake account.The mother and daughter duo were left "terrified" and on a constant "state of high alert" because they didn't know anything about the person sending the frightful messages.For the first time, the pair opened up about being targeted by ex-solider Carl Davies on Louise Minchin: The Truth About Stalking. Louise questioned whether she had changed her usual behaviour out of fear while constantly glancing over her shoulder, wondering if every person she passed could be her stalker.Although, Louise and Mia had been targeted by a person hiding behind a fraudulent profile on social media, the police were able to hunt down their offender.Opening up for first time about the ordeal, Mia said: "I'm logged into mum's Instagram account and suddenly loads of messages started coming."They were all kind of just really offensive, calling us not very nice names and then they got much more graphic.

Louise Minchin has a history of news presenting on the channel, while her BBC Breakfast co-host Carol Kirkwood presents the weather.

Louise Minchin's daughter has spoken out on the 'chilling abuse' her mum suffered during her stalking nightmare for the first time. The former BBC Breakfast host spoke out in January after her and her family were threatened by a stalker last year.

BBC Breakfast presenter Dan Walker has come out in support of Louise Minchin, as the star bravely opens up about her stalking ordeal. Louise’s documentary, The Truth About Stalking, is set to air tonight on ITV.Dan, 44, took to Twitter to share his support for Louise, 53, in view of his 752,300 followers. This morning, Louise tweeted out to her own 250,000 followers: “Good morning, this is not a subject I like to talk about, but in the hope of raising awareness and help to victims of stalking I have made this documentary with @ITVTonight #ITVTonight it is on at 8.30pm.” (sic)Attached was a promotional picture from the documentary, with the caption: “Louise Minchin: The Truth About Stalking”. Sharing this post, Dan penned: “I saw how big an impact this had on Louise and she has made a really brave film about it.

FORMER Breakfast host Louise Minchin saw her stalker jailed in December 2021. She has now spoken of his “chilling abuse”, which involved her daughter Mia.

Davies, 44, turned on the former BBC Breakfast host and her daughter after waging a five-year campaign of harassment against Girls Aloud star Nicola Roberts.The former paratrooper was jailed for two years and eight months for stalking Louise and Minchin last December. But the presenter and her family say they are still living with the devastating impact of his crimes.Speaking on ITV Tonight - Louise Minchin: The Truth About Stalking, Mia said: “I logged into mum’s Instagram account and suddenly loads of messages started coming.“They were all kind of just really offensive, calling us not very nice names and then they got much more graphic. “It was the kind of actions that he wanted to do against me and mum, which got really personal and they weren’t nice to read at all.”Over three days in July 2020, Davies told Louise that he knew where she lived and what cars were on her drive.Describing the ordeal for the first time, Mia told ITV Tonight: “I was terrified, all kind of shaking. “I think my heart was beating really fast.

Louise Minchin, 53, has sat down for a candid chat on her podcast, Push Your Peak, with Strictly Come Dancing star Karen Hauer, 39.The pair discussed a range of personal and work-related subjects, including Karen’s dedication to her job.Louise also discussed her favourite Strictly pairing with the Latin dance specialist.The BBC Breakfast presenter appeared to snub her co-star Dan Walker, who took part in the last season of the hit BBC One show.Louise confessed that her “all-time favourite” dance couple had been Karen with TV personality Jamie Laing.She asked Karen: “Final question for me, who’s your favourite Strictly partner?”Karen said: “Oh, you’re naughty! They are all my favourite. Who do you think?”Louise responded: “My all-time favourite: you and Jamie Laing.”Karen admitted: “I love Jamie.

Louise Minchin, 53, and her family had to deal with a stalker in 2020 and is now recalling the traumatic experience for an ITV documentary airing this evening.The former BBC Breakfast presenter has taken to Instagram to speak out on the "hard" time ahead of her documentary.Carl Davies, 44, was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison after he stalked Louise and her 19-year-old daughter Mia.Louise took to her Instagram story to speak about her documentary Louise Minchin: The Truth About Stalking ahead of its launch.In view of her 128,000 followers, she penned: "This has been a hard documentary to make and I hope it will raise awareness #itvtonight."In the Instagram story there was also a shot of Louise looking sombre in ITV Tonight's post.Louise's stalker Carl sent intimidating messages to Louise via social media over a period of four days in July 2020.The threats involved rape and violence towards the journalist and her teenage daughter.Carl had information about where Louise and her family lived and continually threatened the presenter to know her whereabouts.The police investigation into Louise's stalker lasted nine months and it was found to not be Carl's first stalking incident.Carl had previously stalked Girls Aloud and Masked Singer UK winner Nicola Roberts.In the new episode of ITV's Tonight, Louise will share how this traumatising experience hurt her family and their recovery journey.She will also ask tough questions about whether enough is being done by the police and the government to stop these situations from happening.During Louise's stalker's trial it was revealed he suffered from PTSD as a result of his time serving in Iraq.Judge Nicola Saffman has given him a sentence of two years and eight

Strictly Come Dancing pro Karen Hauer has revealed the gruelling schedule behind the hugely successful BBC One show.She described being “constantly in pain” with not a lot of time to recover between rehearsals and live shows.Speaking about the “physical demands” of Strictly, Karen explained that people did not always see the demanding nature of the programme.She made the candid admission during a chat with journalist and endurance athlete Louise Minchin on the Push Your Peak podcast.Karen said: “You know, one of the things I guess that some people usually do when they watch us dancing, and they’re like, ‘Oh, my God. It’s so beautiful, they look so lovely.

Louise Minchin’s BBC Breakfast exit last year.The Virgin Radio Breakfast host was quick to call the star out on her exit from the BBC morning show as they chatted about her activities since quitting the famous red sofa.She had presented the programme for more than 20 years before she quit for good in September last year, before going on to appear on ITV’s I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! a few months later.She has also been pursuing her dream of endurance sport, including an epic bike ride across Argentina.And appearing on Chris’ show on Monday (March 7), she gave Chris a sneak peek of what she’d been up to.Louise, 53, said: "I’ve just cycled across Argentina. That was eight days, so 100 miles a day on the bike; eight days of 100 miles a day."Louise has also started hosting Wattbike’s podcast Push Your Peak, and gave fans another insight into her cycling journey on social media.But Chris wasn’t sure it was only a passion for the sport spurring her on, as he told her: "I’m not going to say you’re reborn, but there’s definitely something else going on."There’s a wider smile there than I’ve seen for a long time."Louise then admitted that the time since quitting Breakfast has gone "so quick", elaborating: "It went particularly quickly over three weeks when I went to a castle in Wales!"She said of being asked to star on I’m A Celeb: "They’ve asked me for years.

“I am so grateful for the opportunities I’ve had there.“More than anything I’m grateful to have worked with the most incredible people - many of whom are dear friends.“I owe my BBC colleagues everything,” Emily concluded.In response to Emily’s first tweet about joining Global, Louise sent her former colleague her best wishes.“Congratulations,” Louise tweeted out, with three clapping emojis.Louise waved goodbye to her colleagues on BBC Breakfast on September 15 last year after almost 20 years of working on the show.Since then, the presenter has gone on to appear in I'm A Celebrity...

BBC Breakfast presenter Louise Minchin appeared on The Chris Evans Breakfast Show yesterday, radio DJ Chris Evans quizzed her about what she has been doing since she left the show. Louise had been presenting the show for 20 years and left in September last year.The 53-year-old announced her decision to leave the morning news show last summer.The well-known journalist devastated viewers with the news.At the time, she shared some ideas of what she would do after leaving the show.Louise said: “Anybody who watches will be very well aware my passion is endurance sport,” Minchin added, “and I will absolutely continue to do that.“I’ve got lots of really exciting adventures planned.

BBC Breakfast presenter Louise Minchin today revealed that although she is a regular face on TV, her husband David Minchin is banned from appearing at all. After almost 25 years of marriage, the loved-up I'm A Celebrity...