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Man Recalls Horrific Domestic Violence In BBC Documentary 'Abused By My Girlfriend'

Rachel Andrews

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Man Recalls Horrific Domestic Violence In BBC Documentary 'Abused By My Girlfriend'

Featured Image Credit: BBC/Century Films

A domestic violence survivor has recalled the horrific abuse he suffered at the hands of his partner in a new BBC Three documentary in the hope to empower others to come forward.

Abused By My Girlfriend tells the story of 23-year-old Alex Skeel from Bedford, who survived an abusive relationship with ex-girlfriend Jordan Worth. Alex hopes the documentary will also challenge the assumptions of violence and masculinity in relationships.

The documentary, which is already available to stream on BBC iPlayer, uses personal footage and police archive to recount how their teenage relationship descended into horrific violence, which had Alex just 10 days from death.

Alex hopes the documentary will empower others to come forward. Credit: BBC Three/Century Films
Alex hopes the documentary will empower others to come forward. Credit: BBC Three/Century Films
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Viewers will learn the true story from Alex himself, and will also hear from his family and friends who saw him slipping away, unaware of how bad the abuse had become.

Alex penned an article for BBC Three ahead of the documentary airing, in which he detailed some of the abuse he faced.

The pair met at college aged just 16 in 2012. Alex told how it started with little things, such as Jordan telling him not to wear certain colours or style his hair in a particular but resulted in a "nine-month campaign of physical abuse".

She isolated him from his family and friends, controlled his Facebook page and denied him food.

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Alex with his girlfriend Jordan. Credit: BBC Three/Century Films
Alex with his girlfriend Jordan. Credit: BBC Three/Century Films

"Of course, there were some genuinely good times with Jordan - moments when I felt happy, when we laughed and had fun together. It wasn't a nightmare all the time. And I really wanted to try and make a go of the relationship. I loved her, after all," Alex explained in the article.

Things began to get much worse. Jordan and Alex had been together for three years - and had two children together - when she poured boiling water on him in their home, stopping him from nursing his horrific burns in a bathtub.

"I can still see that first tiny drop of water falling onto my skin. It all happened in slow motion. Afterwards, my skin was curdling. The pain was like nothing I'd ever experienced. I begged her to let me get in a bath filled with cold water - it was the only thing I could think of that would stop the burning. She allowed me to get in, and the relief was instant," he wrote. "Then she told me I had to get out - or she'd do it all over again."

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A police officer came round to the house to follow up a previous visit when the abuse came to light.

Alex suffered a nine-month campaign of abuse at the hands of Alex. Credit: BBC Three/Century Films
Alex suffered a nine-month campaign of abuse at the hands of Alex. Credit: BBC Three/Century Films

It was described by Bedfordshire police as one of the worst cases of domestic violence they'd ever come across. After Alex was hospitalised, doctors said that he was just 10 days from death.

Jordan was sentenced to seven and half years in prison in April 2018, becoming the first female in the UK to be convicted of coercive and controlling behaviour.

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Abused By My Girlfriend will examine why Alex - thus other domestic violence victims - feel that they are unable to escape from the abuse.

If you need support or advice, visit Refuge here. You can find out more about Clare's Law, which gives you the right to ask police if your partner may pose a risk to you, here.

Abused By My Girlfriend is now available to stream on BBC iPlayer here.

Topics: TV News

Rachel Andrews
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