X Factor star Lucy Spraggan shares the heartbreaking story of why she really left the show so suddenly
Lucy Spraggan, a former X Factor contestant, has revealed the true, heartbreaking reason why she left the ITV show back in 2012. At the time it was reported that the 20-year-old's sudden departure after week three was because of an illness, but now, at the age of 31, she has shared in her new memoir, Process: Finding My Way Through, that she was raped while filming the series.
The incident happened after a night out for fellow contestant Rylan Clark's 25th birthday in London, and in the book, Spraggan details passing out and being taken back to the hotel she and Clark were both staying in, by a member of the production team.
A hotel porter then offered to help her back to her room, Spraggan writes, and later returned to assault her, using a traceable keycard to get in.
"I woke up the next day with this sense of sheer dread," Spraggan told The Guardian. "I don’t think I’ve ever felt that level of confusion since. I knew that I’d been raped, but I could not process that. So I put my clothes on and went into autopilot."
Clark was the first person Spraggan told about what had happened, who advocated for her (and they remain friends today). The police were called by the production team and she was taken to a specialist unit. Thanks to the porter's keycard, an arrest was made, but Spraggan says she felt the production team was "unprepared" to deal with the situation.
While she received financial and medical support immediately afterwards from them, following the trial Spraggan says she wasn't offered any kind of further support.
"No one ever contacted me to ask if I was OK," she states in the memoir. "No one called or emailed when the trial was over and he was convicted. No one offered me rehabilitation or ongoing mental health treatment. I was on my own."
Spraggan also details in the book how her mental health was affected, and says that whilst she originally wanted to carry on with the show - due to the opportunity she was aware it offered - the attack was ultimately the reason she left. In the years following the show, the singer-songwriter adds that her mental health continued to be negatively impacted by the experience, which saw her relationship with drugs and alcohol worsen. She is now proudly sober.
Explaining why she is choosing to share this extract from her book shared with The Guardian, Spraggan says, "I’ve had to lie almost every single day since. When I’m introduced on a podcast or written about in the paper, it’s always, 'Lucy Spraggan, who quit due to illness.' People still ask me why I left the show, and with each lie comes a flood of extremely painful memories. It’s not good to lie, to hide, to harbour [...] I have spent 10 years in my very own prison, a small box, nodding my head in agreement to a narrative that I didn’t even choose."
She added "now, I’m in a strong enough place to talk publicly about what really happened for the first time" and expressed hopes for the industry to change, including for reality TV production companies to allocate budget to longterm mental health schemes.
Speaking about her experience on the show to the BBC, Spraggan explained that from the beginning she felt like she was made into a "caricature" of herself, that it was "almost like there's a storyline written for you", with it constantly reiterated to her it was a huge opportunity.
Now a decade later, she notes that she hasn't since experienced any other situation wherein "somebody completely takes the reins of my life [...] If I had experienced that again, as a normal human being, I would have said that I would have been in an abusive relationship."
The X Factor was made for ITV by Talkback Thames, part of production company Fremantle and Simon Cowell's company Syco.
A spokesperson for ITV said: "The X Factor was produced by Thames [part of Fremantle] and Syco, who were responsible for duty of care towards all of its programme contributors. ITV is committed to having in place suitable and robust processes to protect the mental health and welfare of programme participants, and we have continued to evolve and strengthen our approach. We expect the producers of commissioned programmes to have in place appropriate procedures to look after the mental health of participants as well as their physical safety. In an event of such a distressing nature, welfare and support towards the victim would always be of the utmost priority.
"We have the deepest compassion for Lucy and everything she has endured as a result of this horrific ordeal. We commend her resilience and bravery."
A spokesperson for Fremantle said: "The serious sexual assault suffered by Lucy Spraggan in October 2012 was a truly horrific criminal act for which the perpetrator, who was not connected with the programme, was rightfully prosecuted and imprisoned.
"To our knowledge, the assault was an event without precedent in the UK television industry. While we believed throughout that we were doing our best to support Lucy in the aftermath of the ordeal, as Lucy thinks we could have done more, we must therefore recognise this. For everything Lucy has suffered, we are extremely sorry."
They added that they have since "done our very best to learn lessons from these events and improve our aftercare processes" and while they have worked hard to try and protect Spraggan's lifetime right to anonymity "we applaud her strength and bravery now that she has chosen to waive that right".
Simon Cowell (who was in America at the time of Spraggan's attack, launching The X Factor US), said in a statement given to Cosmopolitan UK: "What happened to Lucy was horrific and heartbreaking. When I was given the opportunity to speak to Lucy, I was able to personally tell her how sorry I was about everything she has been through. Although we met under tragic circumstances, a genuine friendship and a mutual respect has developed between us."
He added that "Lucy is one of the most authentic, talented, and brave people I have ever met" and shared that since they first connected, he's been honoured to work with her and has "always supported her wish to tell her story as well as her efforts to bring about positive change."
For support, you can contact Rape Crisis’ 24/7 Rape & Sexual Abuse Support Line to speak to a specialist for free on 0808 500 2222 or visit the website for an online chat. Whatever you are going through, if you are struggling and need someone to talk to, you can also call Samaritans on 116 123 any time.
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