Former X Factor star talks about sexual assault during filming -TGN

Content Warning: This article contains mentions of sexual assault. Reader discretion is advised.

Former x factor contestant Lucy Spraggan has revealed that she left the reality TV show after being raped by a hotel doorman in 2012.

The 31-year-old opened up about an incident that happened during the production of the ITV show in 2012 in an interview with The Guardian about her forthcoming memoir, Process.

She originally told the audience that she had withdrawn The X Factor due to an illness, but later revealed that her departure was due to an attack by a doorman at a hotel.

She said The protector that during the show’s final episodes she had come back to her hotel after a night out in central London for fellow contestant Rylan Clark’s 25th birthday at Mayfair nightclub Mahiki.

Spraggan passed out from drinking and a hotel porter offered to take her to her room.

“I woke up the next day with a feeling of pure terror,” she said. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever felt such confusion since then.

“I knew I had been raped, but I couldn’t process it. So I put on my clothes and went on autopilot.”

Clark was the first to tell Spraggan what had happened. The x factor production team called the police, who took her to a specialized unit.

Because Clark checked in with Spraggan and locked her hotel room door behind him at night, the perpetrator had to use a traceable keycard to enter the room when he returned to attack her. It was this keycard that made a quick arrest possible.

Clark has always been a fierce advocate for Spraggan, and the pair remain friends to this day.

The show’s production team cooperated with the investigation, but Spraggan said she believed the team was “unprepared” to handle the incident.

The news eventually leaked to the press, but her right to anonymity meant that the subsequent trial – which was packed with journalists – was only reported in relation to an unnamed “television star”. The perpetrator pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Spraggan made the decision to leave the show partly because of the side effects of post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) — ​​a drug that prevents HIV within 72 hours of exposure — and the mental anguish she felt after the incident.

She had received financial and medical support after the immediate aftermath of the incident, but later said she was no longer supported after the trial.

“No one ever contacted me to ask if I was okay,” Spraggan writes in her memoir. “No one called or emailed when the trial was over and he was sentenced. No one offered me rehabilitation or ongoing mental health care. I was alone.”

When announcing her departure from the show, Spraggan said she initially wanted to tell the public the truth, but thought it could hurt her career.

“I immediately realized it wouldn’t be that easy,” she told The Guardian. “I remember several people saying, ‘You’ve got your whole career ahead of you and you can’t take that back’.

“I was terrified of being known as the girl who was assaulted while I was at work The X Factor.”

In a statement, The x factor creator Simon Cowell said the events were “horrific and heartbreaking”.

“When I got the chance to talk to Lucy, I was able to tell her in person how sorry I was about everything she’s been through,” Cowell said.

“Lucy is one of the most genuine, talented and courageous people I’ve ever met.”

A spokesperson for Fremantle, owner of series producer Thames, said in a statement: “To our knowledge, the attack was an unprecedented event in the British television industry.

“Although we believed all along that we were doing our best to support Lucy in the aftermath of the ordeal, because Lucy feels we could have done more, we must therefore acknowledge this. For all that Lucy has suffered, we are deeply sorry.

“Since then, we have done our utmost to learn from these events and improve our follow-up processes.

“While we have worked hard to protect Lucy’s lifelong right to anonymity, we applaud her strength and courage as she chooses to waive that right.”

Spraggan signed with Columbia Records in 2013. She released her first major studio album, Join the club, in October of the same year, peaking at number 7 on the UK Albums Chart. It was announced that Spraggan had signed to Cowell’s record label, Syco Music, in 2022.

Lucy Spraggan’s Memoirs, Processwill be released in July 2023, and her seventh album, Balancein October 2023.

Rape Crisis England and Wales works to eradicate sexual violence. If you are affected by the issues raised in this story, you can learn more at their website or by calling the National Rape Crisis Helpline on 0808 802 9999. Scotland rape crisis helpline number is 08088 01 03 02.

US readers are encouraged to get in touch RAIN, or the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-4673.