Yahoo News Poldark star Ciara Charteris bravely shares story of surviving rape
Note: The following article contains discussion of sexual misconduct allegations that some readers may find upsetting.
Poldark star Ciara Charteris has bravely shared her story of surviving rape.
Writing about her experience in an open letter on website I Am Arla, Charteris – who played Emma Tregirls in the BBC TV series – revealed that she was raped five years ago by a close friend.
The actress described the man as someone "slightly older" who she had known since she was 16. She wrote that the rape happened after a night out to celebrate her best friend's birthday.
Charteris wrote: "Although I have struggled to say the word rape out loud for a long time, I knew that's what had happened. Despite saying no numerous times, begging him to get off me, trying to physically pull him off, my flight mode was not attuned to protect me from a rapist that had the face of my best friend.
"So I just shut my eyes and passed out in terrified defeat. Only waking later to clean myself up and try and find my bottoms."
Charteris explained that "for numerous (and common) reasons at the time" she chose not to report her rapist, but told her best friend, who was also a friend of his.
She wrote that her friend supported her "unwaveringly, and after much deliberation, we decided to deal with it by never seeing or speaking to him again".
Then, in 2018, Charteris discovered that her best friend had started hanging out with him again.
"It took me a while to process the initial shock, as I tried to make sense of it; questioning every explanation possible," she wrote. "Why? When? How? And although I am no perfect friend, what could I have possibly done to deserve this? As most survivors of Acquaintance Rape understand; we take the blame and live with the shame, as society tells us to."
Charteris then said that after she challenged her friend over the friendship, she blamed her for putting her in a 'difficult position' for years.
"It was one thing to deal with the post-traumatic stress of being physically violated by someone I trusted, but quite another when the person who had stood by me through it all, whom I trusted the most, suddenly decided to turn a blind eye to it. This broke me," Charteris wrote.
In December 2019, Charteris made the decision to report the rape, writing that she wanted to make it clear to both her rapist and her former friend "that I wasn't going anywhere, and what he had done to me would no longer go unacknowledged. I was finally ready to make a noise and fight for my life."
But in March 2020, Charteris was informed by police he would not be charged.
"This was not surprising, and to quote the police: 'it does not make him innocent'," she added. "I had achieved what I set out to do and his name will forever be listed with the police. Nevertheless, the decision not to charge him still hit hard."
Charteris was supported on Instagram by her former Poldark co-star Tom York, who wrote: "This has been a huge decision for her, an incredibly brave one, and I deeply admire her for it.
"I hope to anyone else who has suffered rape, Ciara's story can help by showing, you are not alone, and that it was not your fault. To everyone else.. it is an eye opening account, not only of violation, but of losing those friends closest to you as a result. Please take time to hear her story."
Rape Crisis England and Wales works towards the elimination of all forms of sexual violence and sexual misconduct. If you’ve been affected by the issues raised in this story, you can access more information on their website or by calling the National Rape Crisis Helpline on 0808 802 9999. Rape Crisis Scotland’s helpline number is 08088 01 03 02.
Readers in the US are encouraged to contact RAINN, or the National Sexual Assault Hotline on 800-656-4673.
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