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WAGS AT WAR
Rebekah Vardy reveals what she REALLY said to Coleen Rooney in furious call after that Wagatha post
STUNNED Rebekah Vardy today tells of the moment she confronted Coleen Rooney over her shocking Wagatha Christie post, shouting: “Coleen, what the f*** is this?”
The devastated star was on holiday in Dubai when she saw her pal had accused her of leaking stories in a bombshell message ending: “It’s . . . Rebekah Vardy’s account.”
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Rebekah today opens up about the abuse she still gets over her Wagatha Christie libel battle with Coleen, revealing: “People pass me in the street and say, ‘You’re disgusting, a rat, a troll’.”
The mum of five says she receives up to 100 threatening messages a day and has had to increase security.
Speaking for the first time since the High Court verdict last Friday cost her millions she admits: “I felt sick.”
Becky, 40, who is wed to England and Leicester City striker Jamie, 35, was left reeling when Mrs Justice Steyn described her evidence as “manifestly inconsistent . . . evasive or implausible”.
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The judge described rival Coleen’s testimony as “honest and reliable”. For Becky, it was a kick in the teeth — and once again left the floodgates open for vitriolic trolls.
She added: “The whole thing has been awful. At its worst, I was worried to be on my own, to leave the house. I was scared to be out in public places.
“Even the smallest things, like going shopping, were horrendous.
“People look at me when I’m out, and I’ve had the odd person saying stuff.
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“Everyone always says: ‘These people wouldn’t say things to your face’, but actually you do get the odd few that go that extra mile.
“People walk past and call me names behind my back. I thought that eventually it would die down, it would go away, but it didn’t. It just got worse and worse.”
Wiping away a tear, she adds: “The abuse I was getting was insane. At the beginning it would be 100 messages a day.
“I even got letters sent to my home, and some crazy s*** sent over including letters from psychics.
“I was linked to the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, people suggesting I was a member of IS, stuff like that.
“It was as if I’d murdered someone. Every time something happened it was my fault, every time something new broke, it was my fault.
“It’s really hard because you can give out advice, but actually when you have to take your own advice, it’s completely different.
“Jamie and everyone was like, ‘Just don’t read it. These are people that have just got nothing better to do with their lives’.
“But my line is, when you bring my family into something, when you subject my children to such vicious and disgusting hatred, it does get my attention and it is hurtful.
"I’ve had death threats, rape threats, pretty much everything.
"It’s the pits, really.
“Then I’d go to a football game and there would be these chants sung about me.
“There was a point where I had to stop taking the kids to go and see their dad play football because of how bad it was.
“I was devastated, and it’s really hard to talk about.
The abuse I was getting was insane. At the beginning it would be 100 messages a day. I even got letters sent to my home, and some crazy s*** sent over including letters from psychics.
“As a mum, all you want to do is shield your children from all that s*** and sometimes it’s just impossible to do.”
In the wake of such unimaginable abuse, Becky has had to increase her personal protection including CCTV and a full-time security chief.
He politely welcomed me on to the grounds of the couple’s £3million home in Leicestershire.
Police have also been involved, and several keyboard warriors have been arrested, she reveals.
Becky said: “The police tracked down a few of these people, and I’ve had several letters of apology.
“That’s all well and good. But you don’t come out with something like that and just say ‘Oh sorry’ — you need help.”
October 9, 2019, is, by Becky’s own admission, a day that rocked the former I’m A Celebrity star’s world forever.
Becky and the family were holidaying in Dubai when she heard about former friend Coleen’s statement accusing her of leaking stories to this newspaper, which famously ended: “It’s …….. Rebekah Vardy’s account.”
Becky’s then-manager Caroline Watts rang to warn her Coleen had taken to social media.
Becky said: “All of a sudden my phone imploded.
“I had a missed call from a withheld number, but then she (Coleen) messaged me and said: ‘I’ve been trying to call you’.
“I picked up the phone and called her and basically said, ‘What the f*** is this?’
“Her response was quite rude, quite harsh, and she basically just said, ‘You know what this is’.
“And at that point I really didn’t know what it was.
“It was like, ‘No, surely this can’t be real; no one would do that.”
The police tracked down a few of these people, and I’ve had several letters of apology. That’s all well and good. But you don’t come out with something like that and just say ‘Oh sorry’ — you need help.
Coleen, 36, a hitherto seemingly vanilla, determinedly under-the-radar wag — married to former England captain Wayne since 2008 — was dubbed “Wagatha Christie”, in a nod to her super-sleuthing efforts to find the source of the leaks.
Coleen posted 50 stories on her private Instagram account during her “sting operation” between August and October 2019.
She wrote: “I have saved and screenshotted all the original stories which clearly show just one person has viewed them.”
So is there a part of Becky that, on some level, rather admires her rival’s amateur detective skills? Er, no.
Eyes flashing, she retorts: “The whole thing is ridiculous, totally ridiculous, yet here is everyone wanting to talk about it, wanting to have an opinion.
“But what you can’t get away from is the damage it did and the damage it continues to do.
"This is not a joke. This is my life. If the shoe were on the other foot I would never do that to someone.
“If that was really what I thought, I would be round their house having a conversation and dealing with it the right way. To me it just seemed like an army was weaponised against me.”
Much criticism has been levelled at both women for taking this increasingly bitter case to the High Court.
But in their aftermath, the warring duo continued to pursue their respective truths — racking up around £3million in legal costs in the process. Becky won’t be drawn on the precise sum.
So does she fully grasp the public’s frustration? I understand and I appreciate that people say it’s all been a waste of time, and a massive waste of money.
“Going to court was expensive. Legal fees are expensive. But I didn’t have a choice.”
Becky insists that it was not her who leaked the material and that Coleen jumped to the wrong conclusions.
She added: “I wanted to clear my name. Because I was accused of something I didn’t do and I felt really strongly about it.
“I still do now. I would do it all again tomorrow if I had to, because I am innocent. I have no regrets.”
Becky acknowledges she will “get s***” for talking to The Sun today in the wake of Coleen’s claims.
But such is her determined insistence that she has done nothing wrong, and the strength of her conviction, she boldly refuses to be silenced.
It is such pluck which made her a fan favourite on I’m A Celebrity in 2017, and saw her gently encourage Georgia ‘Toff’ Toffolo to eat a bull’s penis, with the immortal words: ‘Come on, you’ve put worse in your mouth: I know I have!’
While Becky may feel like persona non grata right now, the offers continue to flood in.
She has four documentary deals on the table, and will meet production companies next week to plan her next move.
Despite May’s gruelling seven-day trial — during which Becky was repeatedly reduced to tears, making for extremely uncomfortable viewing — she admits she is considering an appeal.
She added: “That’s in the hands of the lawyers.
“They’re going to look through things and I’m sure they’re going to be having a conversation soon if they’ve not already had one between themselves.
“But it’s really hard because I didn’t do it. I didn’t do it then; I didn’t do it yesterday, I didn’t do it when I was in court and I still didn’t do it.
“I’m a fighter and that’s been really hard over the last few years to continue to push, push and push for the truth to be out there, and to get justice.
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“I don’t know, my gut is all over the place.
“At the minute, it’s just letting the dust settle, and re-examining all the facts and then we’ll see where we are.”
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