Brave Duffy has shown others they are not alone after life-changing kidnap revelation

I HEARD Duffy’s song Warwick Avenue on the radio this week and wondered again, as I often have, what became of this incredibly gifted woman.

At the height of her fame she was right up there with Adele in terms of sheer talent and popularity.

And then Duffy simply vanished, leaving us with some hauntingly beautiful songs, and a sense of bafflement as to why she retreated from her career and withdrew completely from public life.

Well, now we know what ­occurred — and it’s utterly heartbreaking.

In her own powerful words, Duffy revealed that the reason she “disappeared” was she had been drugged, abducted and raped.

I was shocked to read her brutally honest Instagram post about her ordeal, but also full of admiration for her ­resilience.

She explained that up until now she couldn’t talk about her torment, or write songs about what had ­happened because she did not want us all to see the pain and ­“sadness in her eyes”.

It’s tragic that this ­talented songwriter couldn’t bare her soul through her music because it was too painful and raw, and I simply cannot begin to imagine what the poor girl went through.

Duffy is the kind of artist who puts all of her emotions into her performances, which is why her songs continue to touch us so very deeply.

So for her to say that she couldn’t sing any more because her heart was broken is just so desperately upsetting.

It’s also completely understandable she felt she had to hide herself away in order to come to terms with what had ­happened, and to give ­herself some breathing space to try to deal with something so ­unimaginably traumatic.

I sincerely hope Duffy has taken comfort in the outpouring of sympathy from so many of us who have been touched and saddened by what she had to endure.

I also know she will have helped anyone unfortunate enough to have suffered sexual assault and who will be struggling to cope.

She has shown them that they are not alone, and I am sure that she will be a catalyst for some victims to feel able to talk about their own experiences and to seek help.

The good news is that Duffy is starting to heal again.

Thankfully she not only managed to survive, but says she can now “feel the sunshine again” and that her heart is mending.

We don’t yet know any details about the kidnap and rape, but clearly it was an extremely serious and life- changing ordeal.

It has taken a long time for her to have the ­courage to speak out and when she is ready, Duffy will tell all of her story in her own good time.

One day she might even want to start­ ­writing and performing again.

They say that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, and Duffy is the living proof of that.

I’m only sorry she has had to go through such a horrific experience.

Forces strong in Harry

"CALL Me Harry” is back in the UK mopping up the last of his royal duties before he leaves us for ever for the lucrative bright lights of New York and Hollywood.

I’m so relieved he hasn’t abandoned one of his passion projects, the splendid Invictus Games for wounded members of the Armed Forces.

In fact, Harry has teamed up with Jon Bon Jovi, who donated one of his songs as a charity single, with all of the proceeds going to the Invictus Foundation.

I caught up with Mr Bon Jovi this week and he was a bit befuddled over how to address the Duke of Sussex, but decided in the end to go with “the artist formerly known as Prince”, which hopefully will appeal to Harry’s sense of humour.

Jon recorded his song Unbroken at London’s Abbey Road Studios this week, with the Invictus Choir, and told me he just wanted to give something back to the Armed Forces, especially as his mum and dad served in the US Marines.

The Invictus Games are a real testament to Harry’s commitment to the Forces. He has always said serving in Afghanistan was one of the proudest and most fulfilling times of his life.

Those ties are strong, and even when he is thousands of miles away embarking on his new non-royal life with Meghan and son Archie, I’m sure he will never lose sight of his band of brothers, and continue to support them in any way he can.

A bigger crisis is looming

THE coronavirus tidal wave has swept across the world and is now to be found in every continent apart from Antarctica.

The best defence the authorities appear to be offering is for us to rely on our fellow human beings to wash their hands, have some common sense and to not be selfish.

I’m not sure how you feel about that, but it honestly doesn’t fill me with confidence nor optimism.

There are some seriously self-centred individuals who wouldn’t dream of submitting themselves to two weeks at home in “self isolation” for the greater good, if it at all impacted on their social life.

Locking people up in cruise ships and big hotel complexes only seems to serve as a breeding ground for this nasty bug, mainly because strict protocols are not being followed to the letter.

Entrepreneurs and wide boys are making a fortune selling face masks which are virtually useless and offer little more than a psychological crutch.

We are running out of anti-bacterial hand gel and people are cancelling business trips and holidays.

Anxious mums are keeping their kids off school and big sporting events are being cancelled.

Globally we seem woefully ill-equipped to deal with the coronavirus, never mind an even more serious pandemic that is almost certain to engulf us all at some point.

I think we should actually be more worried about another looming health crisis – and that’s the growing resistance to antibiotics by super-bacteria.

If doctors do not stop over-prescribing this life-saving medicine, and patients also fail to take the entire dose of pills, we all risk being slingshotted back to the Dark Ages.

If medics can no longer fight infections, you can kiss goodbye to “non-essential” but life-enhancing operations such as hip and knee replacements.

Much more worryingly, emergency surgery and cancer treatments would be extremely risky.

The ops might be a success, but the patient could end up dying from an infection because the antibiotic “magic bullet” is no longer a cure-all.

That’s much more concerning than a flu bug, no matter how serious.

Happiness over fame

I WASN’T surprised to see that ­former Towie participant Kirk Norcross is happier unblocking drains than being part of the show.

Kirk had the sense to quickly realise that the fame that comes with being a reality “star” isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

He now has his own business clearing ­gutters and jet washing driveways and goes to work with a smile on his face.

He found the impact of being constantly recognised, and the social media backlash, too toxic – and decided to step away from the limelight and do a job that makes him happy.

I salute his maturity, intelligence and sense of priorities.

All those wannabes who would crawl over broken glass to take part in any reality show should take heed.

Fame is fickle. You need to find something real and ­surround yourself with people who want to be with you for the right ­reasons. Just like Kirk.

Well done Emma

EMMA CHAWNER was  just 17 when she appeared on The X Factor in 2007 in a homemade, floor-length white gown stitched by her proud dad.

She was hastily dispatched by the judges, causing her irate parents to storm into the audition room and berate Simon Cowell.

Emma was then subjected to a tirade of abuse and her family were labelled “lazy Teletubbies” and denounced as scroungers and wastrels.

It was a tough time for the teenager, who was a size 22 and weighed 28st.

Since then she’s found work as a childminder and for the past three years has adopted a healthy eating and exercise plan.

The results have been astonishing. Emma has managed to lose 13st and keep it off.

Times have changed since she first appeared on The X Factor and became a figure of fun.

These days she has been praised, congratulated and given encouragement for her achievement, rather than being mocked and belittled.

Perhaps things are changing for the better.