In one of the most sensationalized celebrity scandals of 2013, Nigella Lawson has been accused of being a drug addict in a court cause in which moments of her life were outlined at the Isleworth Crown Court in London.
The celebrity chef finally shared her side offer story behind the incident that made headlines all over the world – the incident where the “brilliant but brutal” Saatchi had his hands around his wife’s throat at an outdoor table in a London restaurant.
“I said ‘I’m so looking forward to having grandchildren’,” Lawson recounted.
“He grabbed me by the throat and said ‘I’m the only person you should be concerned with, I am the only person that should give you pleasure’.”
She said she had put up with a long summer of bullying and abuse at the hands of her husband who she said was out to “destroy” her and her credibility.
The 53-year-old had dismissed Saatchi’s accusations about her being a drug addict or that her house was littered with drugs like cocaine. She said she had joined her then first husband John Diamond with taking cocaine, on six occasions, after his cancer had been diagnosed as terminal twelve years ago. She said that it gave him some escape, but she did not abuse the substance as she had to look after him and the children.
She had also admitted she took cocaine again in July 2010 during a relationship issue with Saatchi.
“I was having a very, very difficult time. I felt subjected to acts of intimate terrorism,” she told the court. “I felt shamed, isolated in fear and unhappy.”
Lawson was convinced that it was absolutely ridiculous to suggest she was a drug addict or habitual user. She said she took the drug during a difficult time in her marriage. “I felt I needed it to get through my life and it helped,” she said.
“I concluded that I did not have a drug problem, I had a life problem, and I needed to attend to that and I did seek out a therapist.”
Lawson also believes that leaving Saatchi was the answer to trying to create a tolerable situation for her and her family. “I have to say, since freeing myself from a brilliant but brutal man, I’m now totally cannabis, cocaine, any drug-free.”
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