Former X Factor contestant Lucy Spraggan has disclosed in her new memoir that she was raped by a hotel porter during the production of the ITV show in 2012. The assault occurred after a night out celebrating fellow contestant Rylan Clark's 25th birthday at the Mayfair nightclub Mahiki, which was attended by X Factor crew.
Spraggan, now 32, said she passed out and was escorted back to her hotel by a production team member. A hotel porter offered to help her to her room but flipped the security latch on her door to prevent it locking. Later, Clark checked on her and locked the door, but the porter returned using a traceable keycard to attack her. Spraggan said she woke up with a sense of 'sheer dread' and knew she had been raped.
Although the production team called the police and an arrest was made, Spraggan felt they were 'unprepared' to handle the situation. She received financial and medical support immediately after the crime but said no one contacted her after the trial, adding: 'I was on my own.' She left the competition, apparently due to illness, but has now decided to tell the truth to rebuild herself.
Fremantle, the show's producers, apologised, saying they recognised they could have done more. ITV stated that duty of care was the responsibility of the producers, while Simon Cowell called the incident 'horrific and heartbreaking' and expressed his support for Spraggan.
