BBC tennis presenter Naomi Broady was subjected to a year-long harassment campaign by a deranged stalker who bombarded her with Facebook messages and bizarre gifts. The former player, whose brother is British tennis star Liam Broady, 31, endured the terrifying ordeal from January to December 2023.
David Richardson, 39, admitted his guilt at Manchester Magistrates’ Court last month. Richardson pleaded guilty to harassing Naomi, 35, and stalking her sister Emma Broady over a three-year period. He reportedly sent “multiple unwanted images and messages via Facebook and sending unwanted gifts, cards and paintings”.
The campaign caused Naomi – who was part of the BBC‘s Wimbledon coverage last month and works as a commentator on BBC Radio 5Live – “serious harm and distress”, according to court documents.
This revelation follows disclosures by British number one Katie Boulter, 29, and US Open champion Emma Raducanu, 22, that they too have been victims of stalking campaigns. When approached by the Mirror at his home in Stockport, Greater Manchester, Richardson confirmed his guilty pleas.
He claimed he initially attempted to form a relationship with Naomi’s sister, Emma, 37, hoping to make a “positive impact” before asking her out. He revealed he attended school with Emma – but after she rejected him, he began targeting Naomi.
Richardson said: “I wanted to try to win her over. I wanted to ask her out.. I was a bit out of practice with the girls… I’ve not been in a relationship. So I just bought her a Selfridges voucher and some flowers for her birthday. And then I didn’t ask her out. But then Valentine’s Day came along, so I bought her another Selfridges voucher and flowers, and then Christmas came along. You know, I sent it to her again, but she thanked me and said it really cheered her up.”
Richardson has been prohibited from making contact with the duo and is barred from visiting their Stockport properties whilst awaiting sentencing at Manchester Crown Court on August 18.
Sources reveal it sparked “serious alarm” amongst the victims. The source revealed: “It was terrifying. They were pleased the police took it seriously. Action has now been taken.”
Legal papers regarding Richardson confirm he: “Between 13/9/2020 and 4/12/2023 at Stockport pursued a course of conduct, by sending multiple unwanted images and messages via Facebook and sending unwanted gifts, cards and paintings, which amounted to stalking causing Emma Broady serious alarm or distress, which had a substantial adverse effect on her usual day-to-day activities when you knew or ought to have known that your course of conduct would cause alarm or distress.”
They add: “Between 18/1/2023 and 4/12/2023 at Stockport, pursued a course of conduct which amounted to the harassment of Naomi Broady, and which you knew or ought to have known amounted to the harassment of her in that you sent various unwanted messages on Facebook.”
Naomi represents the most recent case in an alarming pattern of female tennis stars being targeted by obsessive followers.
Just last year, Britain’s top-ranked player Emma Raducanu was reduced to tears after spotting a man in the crowd who had pursued her to four consecutive tournaments during her match at the Dubai Tennis Championships in February.
The individual, who was subsequently ejected, had previously approached Raducanu, 22, in a coffee shop the day before, presenting her with a letter and requesting a photograph.
Dubai police issued him with a restraining order whilst his details were shared amongst tennis governing bodies.
This wasn’t Raducanu’s first encounter with such behaviour – she had previously fallen victim to another stalker who received a five-year restraining order in 2022 following his 23-mile trek to her residence.
Amrit Magar, 35, left the US Open Champion feeling she was “constantly looking over her shoulder”, Bromley Magistrates’ Court heard.
His arrest came after her father Ian received an alert from their doorbell camera.
Magar, from Harrow, north-west London, was also ordered to wear an electronic tag. Boulter has opened up about her harrowing experiences of being stalked and threatened in recent years.
She revealed: “people have followed me at times” over the past 18 months, and on one occasion after a match at Queen’s, she was pursued by a car after picking up her boyfriend and fellow tennis star, Alex de Minaur.
In a candid interview, she recounted receiving threats while participating in a tournament, stating: “One time in Nottingham, I had someone messaging me on social media saying: ‘I’m outside. I’m going to hurt you if you come outside’. I alerted the WTA, and they found the guy, who was actually on site.”
She added: “Things like this happen all the time. Obviously we are very well protected, which makes you feel safe. The WTA does a great job of being there for you with that. I do feel like we are protected as much as possible, which at least puts your mind at ease a little bit.”
Naomi started her tennis journey at the tender age of seven. Between 2004 and 2008, she made her mark on the junior circuit of the International Tennis Federation (ITF), including a standout performance at the 2008 Wimbledon girls’ tournament where she reached the quarter-finals.
Her Grand Slam debut came during the Wimbledon qualifying rounds in 2008, but she was defeated by Rika Fujiwara. However, in 2009, Naomi clinched her first senior title in Grenoble, France, triumphing over top seed Youlia Fedossova.
Her Grand Slam breakthrough came in 2014 when she was granted a wildcard entry into Wimbledon, securing her first main draw victory against Timea Babos. Naomi’s outings at the Australian and French Opens have resulted in first-round exits, but she has progressed to the second round at both Wimbledon and the US Open in singles play (in 2014 and 2016).
In doubles, her finest Grand Slam performance was at Wimbledon in 2016, where she advanced to the third round alongside Heather Watson. In mixed doubles, she has seen even more success, reaching the quarter-finals at Wimbledon twice – once in 2014 with Neal Skupski and again in 2021 with Jérémy Chardy of France.
She took on the role of a BBC commentator for Radio 5 Live at the US Open in 2021 and has continued to offer commentary and analysis for the broadcaster throughout the most recent Wimbledon tournament.
Naomi is the proud mother of twin boys born in December 2023.