Britain’s Got Talent child star’s stalker came to house with ‘ropes and knives’

Ruth Lawes

Published March 19, 2025 10:48am Updated March 20, 2025 10:54am

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A Britain’s Got Talent star has spoken about her harrowing and ongoing ordeal with a stalker who began contacting her when she was 13.

Connie Talbot, now 24, was just six years old when she was the ITV show’s runner-up in 2007 after going viral with her rendition of Judy Garland’s Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

She said that seven years later, her parents became concerned over ‘constant’ and ‘inappropriate’ messages sent to her official Facebook page for her singing career, which they managed due to her young age.

They were sent by a man in Germany who believed he was in a relationship with the then 13-year-old Connie and her parents reported them to the police.

‘But there is nothing that police can really do until they need to do something. He somehow found out my home address, he came from Germany to my house with pepper spray, ropes, knives, walkie-talkies, he knocked on the door and my brother was there,’ Connie told the People Are Deep podcast.

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‘He sent him on his way, we called the police, they couldn’t find him for days. They looked in every hotel, they couldn’t find where they were staying, it turned out he was camping in a park close to my house. He left walkie-talkies on the doorstep.’

Editorial use only. No book publishing Mandatory Credit: Photo by Ken McKay/Shutterstock (671336bg) Connie Talbot 'Britain's Got Talent' TV programme, London, Britain - 17 Jun 2007 — Connie received inappropriate messages from a man when she was still a child (Picture: Ken McKay/Shutterstock)

Editorial use only Mandatory Credit: Photo by Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock (9986782az) Connie Talbot 'Lorraine' TV show, London, UK - 20 Nov 2018 REMEMBER BGT'S ORIGINAL CHILD STAR CONNIE TALBOT? SHE TELLS US WHAT SHE'S BEEN UP TO! *She was the gap-toothed, sweet six year old, who won viewers hearts with her beautiful rendition of Somewhere Over The Rainbow. *Connie Talbot won our hearts, and melted the judges' - Amanda, Simon and Piers Morgan's - hearts, as she went all the way to the final, losing to Paul Potts. *That was ELEVEN years ago - and she tells us what she's been up to since, why she's big in Asia, and whether she would go for the X Factor now! *It's her 18th birthday TODAY - and we might have a bit of a surprise for her... — She said the man camped in a park near her home and was later arrested (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)

After the incident, Connie said the man was arrested and he was sentenced to four years in prison in the UK. She said she believed he only served half his time.

She encountered him again when she was 18 on holiday in Gran Canaria with her boyfriend. Connie said she had just revealed her travel plans on ITV show Lorraine.

Recalling the moment she came face-to-face with her stalker, Connie said: ‘I just went to use the toilet in McDonald’s, I came back out and my boyfriend was hiding from me as a joke, he was going to jump out at me so I sat down at the table for two, I thought he was still in the toilet. Instead, the guy, who has been stalking me for years, sat in front.

‘I just froze, I couldn’t believe it at first, I was like, okay, this guy is a bit strange. When he said “My name is… do you remember me?” my heart sank and I grabbed my boyfriend’s hand and ran to the taxi rank.

‘I didn’t explain anything. I didn’t want conflict either. I just wanted to get out of the situation.’

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Connie Talbot as a six year old performing on Britain's Got Talent — Connie’s stalking ordeal started after she was runner-up on Britain’s Got Talent (Picture: Ken McKay/REX/Shutterstock)

Connie said she spent the rest of her holiday in her hotel room ‘waiting to go home.’

She added: ‘So there have been some terrifying experiences. I think there’s not enough help to prepare people for this.’

Now, Connie said she does not go anywhere by herself because she ‘feels safe that way.’

According to the Office for National Statistics, one in five women (20.2%) have experienced stalking at some point since the age of 16.

It said that levels of stalking ‘have been fairly consistent over the last 10 years.’

In the year ending March 2024, one in 25 (4%) women aged 16 years and over was a victim of stalking. In the same period, 2.3% of men were a victim.

Britain’s Got Talent airs on Saturday from 7pm on ITV and ITVX.

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