A MUM-of-two has revealed how she lived with a dark secret for decades before finding the courage to report her abusive stepdad.
Nicola Stamford, 37, from Tyne and Wear, had told how her ‘evil’ and ‘twisted’ stepfather destroyed her childhood behind closed doors.
The abuse she faced by Brian Marsden, 65, from Carlisle, as a child in the late 1990s haunted her later in life, but she claims years of manipulation and fear kept her silent.
More than 20 years later, when Nicola read a historic police case online similar to hers, she finally came forward in 2022 about the unimaginable horrors she faced by Marsden.
Now, she’s speaking exclusively to the Sun, determined to encourage other victims of abuse to come forward too.
Nicola, an office administrator, says: “That monster came into my life and tipped it upside down.
“My secret throughout my life was only ever to protect Brian. But I’ve now exposed him for the vile beast he is.
“I want my story to prove to women it’s never too late to report your historic abuse. If I can do it, so can you.”
In 1996, Nicola was 8 years old when she met her new stepfather, Marsden, then aged 36, after the family relocated from Tyne and Wear to his home in Carlisle.
Nicola says: “Mum woke me in the middle of the night and we drove to his two-bed home in Carlisle, 70 miles away.
“She said Brian was my new stepdad. I never even knew she had a new boyfriend.
“From that day on, Brian seemed nice. He told me to call him Dad right away. I even had my surname changed.
“He took me to school every day as Mum worked long shifts. I got on well with him.”
But the following year, in 1997, Nicola claims her stepdad ‘switched.’
She says: “Brian and mum had my baby brother. Weirdly, after his birth, Brian seemed to favour Mum and my brother. But hated me.
“At first, it was housework. Barking at me to tidy the mess, do the dishes and fold the clothes.
“He was horrible and bossy. If I didn’t tidy the way he wanted, he’d drag me down the stairs, yanking my hair.
“I’d be crying at him to stop. He called me every horrible name under the sun.
“He spat in my food and made me eat it.
“Then one day, I was washing the dishes and I backchatted him. He gripped my arm, hard, and bent it backward.
“I did the most horrendous scream. I hated him and would cry every day.”
Sick abuse
Marsden’s campaign of abuse against Nicola continued and Nicola often felt trapped.
By 2000, when she was 11 years, it took a turn for the worst.
Nicola says: “I was doing my laundry chores when Brian called me into his and Mum’s bedroom.
“He shouted for me to bring the basket in the room. I did as he said but as I walked in, Brian was on the bed, masturbating.
“I went bright red. I’d never seen a penis before, let alone someone doing that.
“I told him I’ll leave, but he ordered me to unfold the clothes on the bed. Whilst continuing.
“He made me watch him. Afterwards, I hid in my room and didn’t tell anyone. I was too humiliated.
“But I felt wrong and dirty inside. It didn’t even end there. After that when mum was out or working, Brian would walk around the house with his dressing gown wide open, completely naked underneath.
“He’d sit with his legs open on the sofa, so I’d always see. When mum would return home, he’d close his gown.
“He also did the awful ‘chore time’ when mum wasn’t home either. It was always very calculated. I never knew if it was normal or not.”
Years on, in 2002, when Nicola was 13, her parents split up.
Thankfully, the abuse came to an end and Nicola relocated back to her hometown, not seeing Marsden anymore.
She tried to move on with her life, but the abuse stayed with her. She says: “I tried pushing the abuse to the back of my head.
“I wanted to live a normal life but I had this deep, dark secret. My entire life, no-one knew.
“As I reached adulthood, it only got worse. I started to suffer with flashbacks and nightmares of Brian.
“Especially after I became a mum. I had my two children and it was then when it really hit me how wrong it was what Brian did to me.”
‘I truly understood how it was all abuse’
It wasn’t until 2022, when Nicola was 32, she saw a local police press release online about a historic abuse case.
Nicola says: “On the bottom, it said ‘It’s never too late to report historic abuse. You’ll be believed.’
“I felt shivers. The case was almost identical to mine. I said aloud, ‘This is what Brian did to me.’
“After over 20 years, I built up the courage to finally release this secret I’d been holding for so long.
How to report a sexual assault
“I called NSPCC, and they put me in touch with Carlisle Constabulary. As I told the police everything Brian had done, they were horrified.
“I truly understood how it was all abuse. Even his dressing gown being open.”
The police tracked down Marsden, then aged 60, and arrested him. In November 2025, Nicola faced him for the first time in decades.
Brian Marsden, now 65, of Stonegarth, Carlisle, pleaded guilty to of one count of gross indecency with a girl, one count of indecent assault on a girl and one count of assaulting a young person to cause unnecessary suffering against Nicola.
He also pleaded guilty of another two counts of gross indecency with a girl, two counts of indecent assault and two counts of causing unnecessary suffering against two other girls, now women.
He was sentenced to four years and six months.
She says: “Seeing him, much older, was terrifying. I was trembling.
“But after the guilty verdict, I felt vindicated. After all this time, I finally had justice.
“I’m estranged from my mum and brother. But I have my own family for support. I’m not a victim, I’m a survivor.
“I hope my story can help encourage others to report their abuse, even if it dates back years.
“I never imagined I’d be believed or have a case, but I did. Your local police or NSPCC can help and support you.
“If you’re looking for a sign, like I was, this is it. Please call, and set yourself free too.”
