I had to take out a restraining order to stop crazed fan, says star Nicola
SCOTS violinist Nicola Benedetti has been forced to take out a restraining order against an obsessive fan after being targeted by stalkers.
The 30-year-old former BBC Young Musician of the Year revealed her fears over her safety and said she had been a victim of stalking in ‘three or four’ serious cases.
One fan threatened to commit suicide when they found out she had a boyfriend, while another followed her around Japan when she was performing there and jumped out on her as she walked through hotels.
Miss Benedetti, originally of West Kilbride, Ayrshire, called in police and had to take court action against one stalker.
She now keeps her address in London a secret and her team have had to monitor the whereabouts of another fan who has previously followed her.
She said: ‘I’ve had three or four more serious cases, one really bad. I had to get a restraining order because it was a source of such stress.
‘My worst experience was a guy in Japan who found every hotel I was staying in. He would appear from behind a pillar when I walked through the lobby.
‘There is also someone with a severe mental instability who does scare me. We try to be careful, to be aware of where he is.
‘But I am not overly worried. He has been in the same vicinity as me many times and has never tried to attack me. I’ve learnt to live with it.’
In 2010, a man tried to gain entry to Miss Benedetti’s London flat, an incident which she said left her too scared to stay at home alone.
The classical musician – who was only 16 when she was named Young Musician of the Year and who signed a £1million recording contract at 17 – has said she has been approached by obsessive fans before, some of whom proposed marriage.
The musician was in a relationship with German cellist Leonard Elschenbroich for ten years before they split last year but the pair remain friends and have continued to perform together.