Partner of Twink’s ex-husband claims paper portrayed her as a prostitute

THE partner of pantomime star Twink’s ex-husband, David Agnew told the High Court newspaper articles about her family meant she was a whore and her son a bastard.

Ruth Hickey, aged 36, also said she made a formal complaint to the gardaí of harassment by Adele King (Twink) as well as a complaint to the Data Protection Commissioner.

Ms Hickey said although the word “whore” was one reported to have been used by Twink, she believed the paper was portraying her as a prostitute. The use of a headline, Twink’s Ex Shows Off Love Child, meant her child was a bastard, she said.

Ms Hickey was giving evidence in her action against the Sunday World over photos and other material published after she, her son and Mr Agnew, were photographed leaving the Births, Marriages and Deaths office in Dublin on May 10, 2006.

She claims her constitutional and European Convention rights to privacy, and that of her son, had been breached and also says she was defamed by the use of the word whore.

The Sunday World denies the claims.

She told the court yesterday the first of two articles and photographs — published in May 2006 — was “cheap and nasty and highly offensive”.

It portrayed her as a whore, which she was not.

She added her child was “planned and wanted and there was no sordid or disgusting act”.

Her life has never been the same since and what had been taken from her could never be given back, she said.

The court heard Mr Agnew left Ms King in 2004, after 21 years of marriage, and he moved in three months later with Ms Hickey of Archer’s Wood, Castaheany, Dublin.

Subsequently, there was a great deal of publicity over this, including speculation that Ms Hickey was pregnant.

Under cross-examination from Eoin McCullough, for the Sunday World, she said after seven months of media attention and photographers following her, she took the advice of friend and Social and Personal magazine editor, PJ Gibbons, and wrote an article for the magazine and posed for some photographs with Mr Agnew in August 2005.

She said there was nothing in this article relating to her private family life and it was done to try to get the photographers to stop coming after her and so that there would be “no scoop” or “big catch for a paparazzi-style photographer”.

Ms Hickey, a former professional musician and teacher who changed careers to work in public relations, said five months into her pregnancy she told PJ Gibbons she was expecting a boy.

Ms Hickey said she consented to him using that information in his Irish Examiner column, again in the hope that she would “control” the media attention.

Ms Hickey said she accepted that, legally, the area outside a public registry office was a public place but she did not see why photographs of her, her partner and child would be of interest to anybody else.

She also agreed with Mr McCullough she made a formal complaint to the gardaí of harassment by Twink and also made a complaint to the Data Protection Commissioner.

Ms Hickey agreed Twink was reported by the Sunday World as describing her (Hickey) as a “hoor” and saying she “didn’t give a shite” that Mr Agnew, described in the article as a “notorious philanderer”, had had another “love child” by a woman now living in France.

Asked by Mr McCullough if she (Hickey) would describe these comments as very bitter, she accepted she (Twink) had made these statements on that date, but added she “said very different things to other journalists and to David (Agnew)”.

She also said a voicemail recording of Twink letting out a “tirade of abuse” against Mr Agnew, which was printed in the Sunday World and “was all over the internet”, did not come from her but she wanted to know how the newspaper got it.

Ms Hickey said she “presumed” Twink was extremely upset when she found out her husband was having an affair.

When Mr McCullough put it to her this was the case, that they were conducting an affair — she replied “yes”.

The case is being heard by High Court President Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns rather than before a judge and jury, after the court heard the parties had agreed the case could proceed on this basis.

Ms Hickey was the only witness for her side and the case was adjourned until today when the Sunday World is expected to call a witness.