127,000 turn to BBC sex abuse helpline

A RECORD 127,000 people used a BBC helpline for sexual abuse support following a year of controversial storylines.

Overall, there were almost double the number of online visits or calls – 431,000 – to the service this year, compared with 280,000 in 2016, in relation to all topics.

BBC One programmes such as Three Girls and Apple Tree Yard – which broached difficult issues including child abuse and rape – are thought to be behind the surge in calls. Three Girls, which starred Maxine Peake, was based on the harrowing true stories of the victims of Rochdale grooming gangs.

And 5.2 million viewers saw the graphic rape scene in Apple Tree Yard, which showed scientist Yvonne Carmichael, played by Emily Watson, beaten and sexually assaulted by a colleague.

The BBC’s Action Line helps viewers find support for 456 different issues.