Samantha Morton's friend stalker

Mar 12, 2008, 12:35 GMT

02/10/2008 - Samantha Morton - The Orange British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards 2008 (BAFTA) - Outside Arrivals - Royal Opera House - London, England © Solarpix / PR Photos

Samantha Morton was left "petrified" when a childhood friend started stalking her.

The 30-year-old actress revealed in court yesterday (11.03.08) she was bombarded with threatening phone calls, letters and texts, in which he declared his love for her as well as making chilling references to her death.

Morton had originally assumed they were from a "crazed fan" but soon realised the sender was Noel Watts, who she met when she was 13 and living in a Nottingham children's home.

Giving evidence at London's City of Westminster Magistrates' Court, the Oscar-nominated star said she had not seen Watts for more than a decade when she first received a letter from him in 2004.

She explained: "The letter seemed like this person knew me, he seemed to think we were very close and, indeed, that we were in love. The person said he was in love with me and if I won an Oscar I should thank him for it.

"I get a lot of fan mail and I thought it was a crazed fan.

"But I was very frightened because this person was very angry with me for not being in contact and he said he had been in prison for some years.

"The letter made me feel frightened, vulnerable, exposed and certainly afraid for my family, my daughter."

Morton - who had just one daughter at the time, Esme - alerted police and Watts was banned from contacting her.

However, Watts allegedly began stalking her again after she gave birth to her second daughter Edie by inundating her agent Nicola Van Gelder with text messages meant for the star.

Morton told the court she was frightened when she discovered it was Watts again.

She was so worried she had cameras installed at her London home to protect her and her family.

Watts was later arrested when he turned up at Van Gelder's offices, demanding to see Morton.

The case continues.

(C) BANG Media International