Firth’s wife is living in terror over childhood friend ‘who’s stalking her’
A jOURnAlIST has been accused of terrorising Colin Firth’s wife with a two-year campaign of stalking and harassment.
Marco Brancaccia is said to have hounded livia Giuggioli, the actor’s Italian wife, with threatening telephone calls and messages.
Police have begun an investigation and reportedly seized Brancaccia’s computer and phone. The alleged stalker, who works for Italian news agency Ansa, is a childhood friend of 48-year- old Miss Giuggioli. He said to have started harassing the producer – who has been married to Firth, 57, for more than 20 years – in September 2016 because he could not face being cut out of her life.
He also threatened to write compromising articles about the couple, according to Italian newspaper la Repubblica.
Miss Giuggioli said she was living in terror and thought Brancaccia, 55, might be following her, it was reported.
A spokesman for Italy’s Carabinieri police confirmed that police are investigating a complaint which been lodged by the couple.
Prosecutors have now put in a request to judges in Rome to take the case to trial. If found guilty, Brancaccia could face up to four years in jail after Italy introduced a law against stalking in 2009 following an increase in cases of women being harassed and murdered.
Brancaccia’s lawyers have denied the allegations, saying he had ‘absolutely nothing to do with the events described and has already filed a legal complaint to protect his good name and his honour, and to be able to supply his version of the truth of what happened’.
They added: ‘The reconstruction of the events by la Repubblica does not correspond to what Vallone, Brancaccia, ‘The request from the first really for a Italian lawyer trial we happened.’ told heard being Press.’ representing The made about Times: Rosita was a worked comment, Ansa, for where 30 but years, Brancaccia it has refused been has to reported the company that as he a remains bureau chief with in Brazil.
Firth and Miss Guiggioli mainly live in Chiswick, West london, with their sons luca, 16, and Matteo, 13, but they also own a home near the town of Città della Pieve in Umbria.
Miss Giuggioli, who is currently in new York, shared a number of posts for International Women’s Day on Friday for all ‘the global feminists out there’. She is an Oxfam ambassador and has travelled to Ethiopia, Kenya, Bangladesh and Zambia with the charity.
She is also a founding member of Annie lennox’s The Circle – a women’s advocacy group.
Firth thanked her ‘for putting up with my fleeting delusions of royalty’ in his Oscar acceptance speech for his role as King George VI in The King’s Speech. He gained Italian citizenship last year ‘ in order to have the same passports as his wife and children’.
A spokesman for Firth said: ‘There is an ongoing criminal prosecution and it would be inappropriate to comment. The reports appear to be based on leaked court documents.’
‘Delusions of royalty’