Devastated Ferne Mccann prepares for life as a single mum after her acid attack ex is arrested and charged
The pregnant star’s in hiding – and friends are worried
Ferne Mccann’s life right now has more drama than even the most explosive episode of TOWIE. Just one day after her ex-boyfriend Arthur Collins was arrested on suspicion of being involved in an acid attack in an east-london nightclub, her rep confirmed that, yes, Ferne is pregnant with his baby and is “determined to do all she can to have a happy and healthy child and face the challenges of being a single parent”.
“Ferne’s in a really, really tough spot right now,” says a close friend. “She did love Arthur, yes, but since the incident, she knows that she needs to have nothing to do with him. She’s totally cut off the relationship in her mind, and it wasn’t hard, because of what
‘She’s scared to leave the house and she’s crying all the time’
happened. She’s put him to the back of her mind and she’s concentrating on her pregnancy.”
However, another friend of the TV presenter tells heat, “I think a part of her may still love Arthur, but she feels that she can never be with him again – she feels like her dreams of being a proper family are over. Right now, she’s not
planning on letting him see the baby. I personally think she may give in after time, though. She’s just going through so much
heartache at the moment, but she is excited about the baby.”
Scaffolder Arthur was arrested on 22 April on suspicion of being involved in the acid attack that left two people partially blinded and more than 20 injured. He’d been hiding out at an empty house in Northamptonshire for almost a week, and when
police raided the place, video footage showed him crying and begging officers not to taser him. Two days later,
the 24 year old was charged with 14 counts of wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm (GBH) and one count of throwing corrosive fluid on a person with intent to cause GBH. He’s been remanded in custody until another hearing on 22 May, and could face a life sentence if he’s found guilty.
Since Arthur’s arrest, Ferne’s barely been seen in public. She was spotted flying out of Bristol airport to Ireland, then back again a few days later, but she hasn’t returned to her Essex home, or her mum Gilly’s, instead choosing to avoid paps by staying with friends.
“Ferne’s just so vulnerable – she’s scared to leave the house, and she’s crying all the time,” a close friend tells heat. “She’s so anxious to ensure everything goes well with the pregnancy; she’s trying to stay calm and not get stressed out.”
Ferne’s rep said last week that the star hadn’t spoken to Arthur – who she’d been dating on and off for over a year, and had been planning to move in with and marry “on a beach” – and that she was under “immense strain”. She added, “Ferne is grateful for the sympathetic way news of her pregnancy has been covered, and people’s support, and, obviously, her first concern is for her child’s health. Ferne is in no way seeking sympathy for her situation and her thoughts are with the victims of the horrific attack on Easter Monday.” While heat understands that Ferne will remain in hiding as long as she can, last week there were signs she was trying to take her mind off things – she was liking Arg’s Instagram pictures and Sam and Billie Faiers’ holiday pics online. And at the Boux Avenue launch last week, former TOWIE star Lucy Mecklenburgh told heat exclusively, “Ferne is going to be an amazing mum. What she’s going through is awful. But she will get through it.”