‘My life was utter hell for two years’: BBC antiques dealer Adrian Higham opens up about nightmare neighbour dispute that saw him arrested and handed restraining order for stalking
A BBC antiques dealer has described his life as ‘two years of pure hell’ after he was arrested for stalking a nightmarish neighbor row.
But now, with the case against him dropped, Adrian Higham, 58, has spoken out about the ordeal that led to his arrest, seven hours in a police cell and the granting of a temporary restraining order.
Mr Higham was a regular at The Bidding Room, hosted by Nigel Havers, where specialist traders competed for items brought in by the public.
However, he was removed from the BBC program and suffered a nervous breakdown as a result.
Taking to social media with the case behind him, he wrote: ‘After two years of hell with our ex Neighbours. It’s my turn to fix the situation.
‘I’ve never seen people hate you so much in my life.’
He added: ‘Now is the time to tell the truth.’
To talk ArgusMr Highman, from Rotherfield, East Sussex, said what started as a ‘normal neighbourhood’ dispute turned into ‘torture’.
Adrian Higham, 58, has spoken out about the fight that led to his neighbor being arrested, spending seven hours in a police cell and being given a temporary restraining order.
Mr Higham was a regular at The Bidding Room, hosted by Nigel Havers, where specialist traders competed for items brought in by the public.
Mr Higham believes a neighborly dispute was the reason he was sacked by the BBC. The publisher denies this
‘The police never listened to our side. “They treated me like the bad guy,” he said.
He added that he believed the reason the BBC let him go was because of a neighbor dispute. The publisher reportedly denied this.
‘It’s very sad because I have a really good reputation on The Bidding Room and in general,’ he said.
‘If someone is being followed, it’s really serious.’
Earlier this year, he announced he was ‘taking a break from social media’ after a restraining order was issued against his former neighbour.
He also said that he was walking away from television work, even though it was a ‘dream’. [his] ‘Working in television’.
“I had a lot of fun and met some great people and those close to me know where I am and can send me private messages,” she wrote.
‘But I’ll never publish anything. Now my life is becoming special!!! ‘This is a choice I made and nothing will change.’
Mr Higham was questioned under caution in April last year after police said they had received ‘reports of harassment and criminal damage’ towards his neighbour, a woman in her 30s.
He was later arrested this June ‘on suspicion of harassment following allegations of verbal abuse against the same woman’.
Describing what happened as ‘horrible’, the person claimed that he was held in a police cell for ‘seven hours’.
Mr Higham was arrested in June ‘on suspicion of harassment following allegations of verbal abuse against the same woman’ but the case has now been dropped. Picture: Mr Higham appearing at Brighton Magistrates’ Court
Earlier this year, he announced he was ‘moving away from social media’ after a restraining order was issued against his former neighbour.
However, there was insufficient evidence for police to lay charges and instead Higham was granted a Stalking Protection Order (SPO) by Brighton Magistrates’ Court on 23 July.
It banned ‘communication, approaches, references or surveillance’ of former neighbours.
The court announcement stated that the order under the Stalking Protection Act 2019 was applied on the grounds that “you have engaged in actions related to persistent stalking, such as derogatory social media posts, aggressive behavior, filming a neighbor.”[s]that you create a risk associated with stalking another person and that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the proposed order is necessary to protect another person from such a risk.’
However, after an investigation, DPT was withdrawn on 7 October.
Mr Higham and his partner Tara said it was a ‘huge relief’ and that their lives had been ‘complete hell’ for two-and-a-half years.
The former BBC star said the ordeal left him feeling suicidal, with his wife saying it had left a “deep wound”.
“It shouldn’t have gone anywhere; what a waste of police and court time,” Tara added.
The couple explained that they had a ‘traumatic’ experience when they frequently went to their home in France and that they both used antidepressants.
A Sussex Police spokesman said: ‘Sussex Police understands the distress and disruption that anti-social behavior can cause in communities and we will always investigate reports thoroughly, seeking a satisfactory resolution in collaboration with community partners.’
They added: ‘We remain committed to tackling anti-social behaviour; Every report is taken seriously and addressed jointly with local agencies.’
Bidding Room has competed for 6 series so far and Higham has only missed one series so far due to health issues.
Suffering a serious back injury, he spent 9 months in hospital, during which time he spoke of the kindness of his fellow vendor at the Tender Room, Moses Otunla.
