Rebekah Vardy has revealed she plans to use her fame as a platform to help others as she puts the Wagatha Christie case behind her.
On Tuesday, the 41-year-old tearfully tells a Channel 4 documentary how she was sexually abused as a child growing up as a Jehovah’s Witness.
And now the star, wife of England footballer Jamie Vardy, has told the Mirror she plans to speak out more on issues close to her heart as she makes a fresh start after her High Court battle with Coleen Rooney ended last year.
She said: “I see it as an opportunity. I think being in the public eye I have a voice. That voice will be used to generate awareness of issues others may shy away from.
“It’s important for me to draw on my own experiences to offer help and support to others in similar situations.”
Rebekah, who has appeared on ITV ’s Dancing on Ice and I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, added: “Channel Four have been brilliant to work with, I’d love to build on my relationship with them.
“We’re currently discussing a number of subjects which are close to my heart.”
In the documentary she says: “While I’ve spoken about some of this before, I’ve never talked about the way it was dealt with by my family and by the Jehovah’s Witness organisation.
“It’s the one thing that’s affected my life more than anything else.”
Rebekah, who is estranged from her family, also speaks with another victim of child abuse and the mother of a man who took his life after being expelled from the organisation.
In response to the claims made in the documentary, Jehovah’s Witnesses said elders are directed to immediately report an allegation of child sexual abuse to the authorities, even if there is only one complainant and no other corroborating evidence.
■ Rebekah Vardy : The Jehovah’s Witnesses and Me, Channel 4, Tuesday 10pm.
