UK NEWS
BARRY GEORGE FACES QUIZ OVER 'STALKING' OF TV'S KAY BURLEY
Presnter Kay Burley yesterday
By Martyn Brown and John Twomey
THE man wrongly jailed for Jill Dando’s murder is set to be questioned by police after television presenter Kay Burley alleged he is stalking her.
Barry George, 48, is said to have become obsessed with Sky News star Ms Burley when she interviewed him after he was cleared of murdering the Crimewatch presenter.
Reports have emerged that he cycled seven miles in the rain to Sky’s HQ in Isleworth, Middlesex, two weeks ago, to get a tape of his chat, in August, with the news anchorwoman.
Security men contacted the news studio but George was told he could not see Kay and he eventually left.
On Tuesday, fears grew for Ms Burley’s health after she collapsed on set at the end of the 5pm news bulletin. She has been given time off from presenting.
Yesterday, as Ms Burley, 47, paid tribute to her former colleague Bob Friend at his funeral in Hammersmith, west London, it was revealed she had contacted police to voice her concerns over George’s behaviour.
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Self-confessed stalker George
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Senior police officers have met to discuss any risk George might pose to the presenter, and agreed he needed to be spoken to.
A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: “We can confirm that a woman has made an allegation of harassment against a man, and we are investigating.”
The former Territorial Army soldier, who has convictions for attempted rape and sexual assault, is a self-confessed serial stalker of women.
Detectives investigating him for the murder of Jill Dando found 4,000 photographs of women in his neighbourhood.
Officers also found evidence of his fascination with female broadcasters including Anthea Turner, Caron Keating,
Fiona Foster and Emma Freud. He once tried to break into Kensington Palace and speak to Princess Diana. The gun-obsessed misfit, who claimed he was a Hollywood stuntman, was jailed for life at the Old Bailey in July, 2001, for the murder of Dando, 37.
She was shot in the head at close range on the doorstep of her home in Fulham, West London, in 1999.
George’s conviction was quashed by the Court of Appeal and he was cleared by an Old Bailey jury in August following a retrial.
He is set to receive compensation of around £1 million. George’s associates say he was very taken by mother-of-one Ms Burley when she interviewed him two days after his acquittal. One commented: “He kept going up to Kay asking for her business card.
“He told her he was going to be a bigger stunt artist than Eddie Kidd and that he wanted to invite her to his first show.
“She pretended to look in her bag for a card and then made an excuse that she didn’t have any with her.
“In the end, a colleague stepped in and rescued her – insisting Barry take one of his cards instead.”
Yesterday, Ms Burley appeared relaxed as she left her north London home with journalist partner George Pascoe-Watson. She smiled and said: “Sorry, I am not saying anything.”
Mr George’s spokesman said police had not yet interviewed him about the allegation.
He added: “Barry says he has done nothing wrong and there is no truth in these allegations whatsoever. He wanted a tape of the interview Kay Burley had done with him and he went to pick it up from Sky HQ.
“It was all open and above board and he told everyone he was going. When he got there he didn’t ask to see Kay. He made a request for the tape and then went away.”
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