Police officer in court charged with the murder of Sarah Everard
Death sparks outpouring of grief, but all vigils are cancelled
A Metropolitan Police officer appeared in court yesterday charged with the murder of Sarah Everard.
Wayne Couzens, 48, is charged with the kidnap and murder of Ms Everard, a 33- year- old marketing executive, whose death has prompted an outpouring of anger and demands for action to curb violence against women.
She had last been seen walking to her London home on March 3. Her body was found in woodland in Ashford, Kent, on Wednesday.
A series of vigils, including in Edinburgh, Glasgow and London, in her memory and to highlight growing concerns over women’s safety, were cancelled yesterday due to Covid restrictions. Organisers instead urged people to hold doorstep vigils.
Couzens, a police constable, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court yesterday accused of kidnapping Ms Everard in the Poynders Road area of Clapham. Ms Everard, who has been described as “beautiful, thoughtful and incredibly
kind”, was reported missing by her boyfriend on March 4.
Zoe Martin, prosecuting, said Ms Everard had visited a friend and left at around 9pm on the night she went missing to walk the 2.5 mile journey home. She was seen walking alone on CCTV several times up to around 9.30pm before, around 9.35pm, a bus camera captured two figures on Poynders Road and a white Vauxhall Astra with its hazard lights on.
Another bus camera captured the same car with both front doors open. The registration of the vehicle, later confirmed to be a car hired in Dover, was captured and tracked by police as it left London towards Kent. A body, later formally identified as Ms Everard via dental records, was discovered on March 10. A post- mortem examination has taken place but no cause of death was given in court.
Couzens, of Deal, Kent, wore a grey tracksuit and appeared to have a wound to the top of his forehead as he sat in the dock yesterday.
He was previously treated in hospital for a separate head injury on Thursday, also sustained while in his cell. He spoke at court only to confirm his name and personal details.
Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring remanded Couzens in custody to appear at the Old Bailey on Tuesday.
The Met force previously said Couzens, a trained firearms officer, joined in 2018, most recently ser ving in Parliamentar y and Diplomatic Protection. He was not on duty at the time of Ms Everard’s disappearance.
Events to remember Ms Everard and mark concerns over women’s safety were cancelled yesterday because of ongoing Covid- 19 restrictions.
Vigils were cancelled across the UK, with organisers instead urging people to stand on their doorsteps at 9.30pm, the time Ms Everard was last seen, and light a candle or shine their phone in her memory.
Police Scotland urged people against attending a planned vigil outside the Scottish Parliament building yesterday. Organisers said they would “build on events hosted online” instead.
Organisers of a Glasgow event asked people to tie a ribbon and a note at four locations – George Square, Queen’s Park, Kelvingrove Park or the Mary Barbour statue in Govan – and urged people not to remain at the locations.
Chloe Whyte, the organiser of the Edinburgh vigil, said reaction to the death of Ms Everard had “shone a light on how many women have been made to feel unsafe” in public spaces.
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said public gatherings risked further spread of the virus.
She said: “If we weren’t in the situation we are in right now then I would certainly join any public vigil. But we are not in normal times.
“What I’m saying to all of the women who are feeling angry, afraid or upset, I’m right there with you but please do not have a vigil.”
Rape Crisis Scotland added yesterday: “We know it feels deeply unjust not to be able to gather to remember Sarah Everard and demand our streets are safe for all of us. We will light a candle but know this isn’t enough. Women deserve to be and feel safe and we cannot and will not stop until that is the case.”
This is not the world I want my daughters growing up in
Millions of viewers may tune in every morning to hear the views from her TV sofa but one opinion matters most to Lorraine Kelly.
And, on Mother’s Day, the TV host has paid tribute to her mum Anne for, among many, many other things, her honest reviews.
“Mum is so proud of me,” Lorraine said. “But, like all mums, she tells the truth. She watches the show every day with her cup of tea and we always catch up on the phone after.
“She’ll often say, ‘why didn’t you ask this question?’ or ‘I liked that dress’ or ‘I didn’t like your outfit today! She isn’t scared to say what she thinks. But I welcome that. I value her opinion. ”
Anne, who still lives in East Kilbride where Lorraine grew up, has been a huge inspiration to her daughter throughout her career, motherhood and life in general.
“My mum is amazing,” Lorraine said. “I just can’t imagine life without her.”
The last eight months have been tough for the popular ITV presenter who, living more than 400 miles away in London, hasn’t seen her mum due to coronavirus restrictions. And today, on Mothering Sunday, the pair, like much of the nation, will have to rely on a video call to mark the occasion.
“Traditionally I would come up or mum would come down and we would go for a nice day out, but not this year,” Lorraine said.
“I’ll send flowers and some nice chocolates, but, because we’re not allowed to travel, we won’t see each other. It’s hard, but we need to stick to the rules. I’m just hoping we can make up for it later in the year.
“That first hug will be a big thing for us. I can’t wait. It will certainly be emotional to reconnect.”
When restrictions eased a little in the summer, Lorraine and daughter Rosie came to Scotland to visit parents Anne and John.
“Rosie had just come back from three years in Singapore so we went up to see mum and dad,” Lorraine said.
“I have a lovely photo of mum, Rosie and I on a day out to Luss – and that was the last time we were all together.
“I’ve only seen my parents twice in the last year. In the summer and last March, just before lockdown.
“Mum and I chat on the phone every day and have a cup of tea together on Zoom. Thankfully she’s pretty tech aware which is fantastic. It’s great she’s really into all that stuff. It makes all the difference.
“The truth is there isn’t much to talk about apart from what you had for your dinner and what you’re watching on Netflix! All of our worlds have gotten quite small.
“At least we have been able to do that – but it’s just not the same!”
Lorraine, 61, and her mum have always had a strong bond, which she believes has been strengthened by their closeness in age.
“Mum was only 18 when she had me. She was just a baby,” she said. “When I was
–
growing up, mum and dad were the trendy parents, listening to The Beatles, Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones and Radio Caroline.
“Mum was always so beautifully dressed and always looked very glam with her Mary Quant-style make up,” said Lorraine.
“I always remember listening to Dusty Springfield with mum and trying on her clothes and shoes.
“She’s still very stylish. In fact, she despairs with me a bit because I live in jeans and sweatshirts. I’m definitely not as glam!
“She’ll be 80 in September but mum certainly doesn’t look her age and she doesn’t act it either. She’s always on the go with something, whether it’s German classes or fitness sessions. Every day is busy!”
Lorraine says it’s Anne she has to thank for her can-do attitude and her good skin.
“When people say to me
‘ You don’t look 61’, it’s because I got mum’s amazing skin and bone structure.
“The best advice she ever gave me was ‘moisturise, moisturise… and moisturise some more’.
“And to make sure I take my make up off at the end of the day. With heavy make up for TV this is especially important and I really think it makes all the difference.”
Mum has always said you need to put the graft in. I wouldn’t be where I am today
Lorraine, who recently celebrated her 35th anniversary in broadcasting, considers herself lucky to have been able to go into the studio throughout the pandemic to film her morning show, Lorraine, five days a week.
“It’s been great still having a routine,” she said. “We’re only allowed in to film, then have to do our meetings on Zoom chats, and research at home, but it has been a joy just to be able to do that.” From her early days as a journalist on the East Kilbride News, Lorraine has had a strong work ethic, which she also attributes to her mum.
“Mum has always said you’ve got to put the graft in. And I’ve definitely got her to thank for where I am today. I’ve had to work hard to get to where I am today, and that definitely came from my mum.
“She didn’t work full-time so she could be there for us when we were little, but she had Saturday jobs and worked part-time when we were growing up. She always contributed.
“And taught us well. In fact, mum and dad taught me and my brother Graham how to read and write before we started primary school. They weren’t pushy parents, they just wanted us to do our best.
“When I got a bit older, I would have been the first in the family to go to university.
“But I got a job on the local paper instead. I think my mum and dad were disappointed, but they never said anything.
“Graham went to uni so, of course, they got their photo of a child with the scroll and funny hat for the fireplace.
“And they have supported me in absolutely everything that I have done too.”
Lorraine is hopeful she, her husband Steve and Rosie can be reunited with her parents before the year is out.
“It’s mum’s 80th birthday in September so I’m hoping we can have a party for her. It was dad’s 80th last week but of course I didn’t see him for that.
“But we can’t let these things go without a celebration. There will be so much to celebrate when we are allowed to meet up again.
“I just can’t wait to hug my mum and smell her perfume again. She loves Chanel No 5 – whenever I smell it I think of her.
“She wears it every day, even if she’s just putting the bins out! Her mantra is don’t save things for best. Every day should be your best.
“And given the past year, I don’t think there could be a better mantra for us all right now. After all, mums always know best!”