Cheryl Tweedy has reportedly been in a ‘living nightmare’ due to a stalker who made her ‘scared to go out of her front gate’, as Liam Payne’s first death anniversary approaches
A source claims Girls Aloud star Cheryl has been in a ‘really bad place'(Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images)
Cheryl Tweedy is hopefully sleeping a little easier, after her stalker was jailed for continuing to harass the singer at the home she shares with her and Liam Payne’s young son, Bear. Convicted killer Daniel Bannister was handed a 12-month prison sentence last week, marking the end of what a source tells OK! has been a nightmarish time for the Girls Aloud star.
“Cheryl has been in a really bad place, it’s been a living nightmare – she was scared to even go out of her front gate,” a source claims exclusively to OK!. “It’s been really tough on her and Bear, and after the heartbreak of losing Liam, it was the last thing she needed.” They add: “Everyone’s hoping she can concentrate on what’s important to her now, and be able to mark the anniversary of Liam’s death properly, without this horrendous thing weighing on her.”
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Cheryl admitted emotionally of her stalker ordeal, ‘No one should have to feel this way'(Image: Getty Images)
During the hearing at Reading Crown Court last week, it was revealed that Cheryl, 42, was left so terrified of her stalker’s intentions that she’d even hired personal security to keep her and eight-year-old Bear safe.
In her powerful victim impact statement read out in court, the Newcastle-born star left no doubt about the massive impact the whole ordeal has been having on her. “Each time he returns the worry of his intentions intensifies,” she said, emotionally. “I’m worried, nervous and on edge every time I open my gate. No person should have to feel this way.”
Devastatingly, she also said that Bannister had “made my young child scared”, referring, of course, to the son she shares with late One Direction singer Liam, who died on October 16 last year. Fifty-year-old Bannister, who the court heard was a musician, admitted a single charge of breaching his restraining order at an earlier hearing back in June and was remanded into custody until last week’s Crown Court appearance.
His latest prison stint is his second this year, after he was previously jailed for 16 weeks for repeatedly showing up to the charttopper’s home, while banned from doing so under a restraining order. In March this year, Wycombe Magistrates’ Court was told Bannister “can’t stay away” from the pop singer, and had already shown up to her home on two separate occasions the year before, which led to him being slapped with a restraining order.
Friends hope Cheryl can ‘focus on what’s important to her’ now the ordeal is over(Image: INSTAGRAM)
In January 2024, Bannister rang the intercom buzzer on the front gate at Cheryl’s home, claiming he had “come to get Cheryl”. He then showed up again six months later, when the star was at home with Bear, asking for a “glass of wine” because he was “really thirsty”. According to Prosecutor Datta Ryan, “She called her brother. The defendant was standing outside her property and remained there.”
Following the January and July 2024 incidents, Bannister was given a restraining order and a four-month prison sentence, but continued with his campaign of harassment after his release, showing up to Cheryl’s house for a third time last December.
Speaking about the most recent incident, Cheryl said, heartbreakingly, that her sole focus was to “protect my child from any harm. “I knew this was Daniel because I have had previous incidents where Daniel has come to my property,” Cheryl said in a statement to police. “I immediately panicked when I saw Daniel. I feared for my safety and my child’s safety. My son was due back from the cinema and I didn’t want him to see Daniel. I was concerned he was looking for a way into the property.”
Of course, Cheryl has been dealing with her stalker while also processing the tragic death of her ex Liam, after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires on October 16 last year. A post mortem later revealed the 31 year old had died of “internal and external haemorrhage” and multiple traumatic injuries, and the Argentinian prosecutor’s office said tests found traces of cocaine, alcohol and a prescription antidepressant in his system.
The star will be preparing to mark the anniversary of ex Liam Payne’s death with their son, Bear(Image: Cheryl/Instagram)
Cheryl and Liam dated for two years until 2018, the year after Bear was born, but it emerged earlier this year that in light of the fact Wolverhampton-born Liam hadn’t left a will prior to his death, his ex would be jointly responsible for managing his £28m fortune he left behind.
With Bannister now behind bars and as the anniversary of Liam’s death approaches, our source claims Cheryl will be laser-focused on taking care of her son.
“She’s of course relieved that he’s been jailed, and she just wants to focus on Bear now, but she also knows he started up again after the last time he was jailed too so it’s hard to totally move on. But she’s a fiercely strong woman and Bear is her world, so he’s her only focus right now.”
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