Â鶹ԼÅÄ

Warning: Some viewers may find the content of this video distressing.

Rachael Watts has spent her life hiding a secret. Now 40, she was seven years old when Russell Bishop – who became known as the Babes In The Wood murderer - abducted, attacked and sexually assaulted her in 1990.

It was her testimony which finally meant Bishop was convicted and put behind bars for the murders of two nine-year-olds, Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway, in 1986 - albeit not until 2018 when forensic scientists presented new DNA evidence. He finally received two life sentences with a minimum of 36 years in prison.

During the first trial and in the years since, Rachael’s family have fought to protect her anonymity, hoping she could lead as normal life as possible and Rachael has never done a broadcast interview about what happened to her. But since Russell Bishop’s death in January this year, she has changed her mind.

She chose to speak to Woman’s Hour and share with Emma Barnett what she remembers Bishop did to her. Rachael, who suffers from agoraphobia now, says she wanted to talk about the impact Bishop’s actions had on her life in the hope that it will help her heal.

You can listen to Rachael’s interview in full by heading to Â鶹ԼÅÄ Sounds - it’s the episode from 1 December.

If you’re affected by the issues in this interview, there’s information and support on the Â鶹ԼÅÄ Action Line website.

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