What Did Paul Ansell Mean by Calling Social Media a "Monster"?
Nicola Bulley’s partner, Paul Ansell, has labeled the overwhelming social media focus and online obsession surrounding her disappearance as a “monster” that spiraled out of control. Speaking publicly for the first time since Nicola’s body was discovered, Paul revealed that the initial surge of interest in the case was viewed positively by the family. They hoped it would pressure Lancashire Police to continue their search for Nicola. However, this hope was soon eclipsed by a tide of amateur sleuths on social media, spreading hurtful and wildly misleading claims about the case, resulting in the family receiving a deluge of online hate.
“I think anything like that is a double-edged sword,” Paul stated. “That’s the problem. You’re poking a monster.”
What Happened on the Day Nicola Disappeared?
The tragic story began on 27 January 2023, when the Lancashire mother-of-two vanished while walking her dog, Willow, in St Michael’s on Wyre shortly after dropping her daughters off at school. Nicola’s body was found in a river on 19 February, and an inquest in June confirmed she died due to accidental drowning.
A new documentary, The Search For Nicola Bulley, explores the media coverage and significant impact of amateur internet investigators while featuring insights from Lancashire Police and Nicola’s family.
How Did Paul Describe That Normal Morning Turned Tragic?
Describing the events leading up to her disappearance, Paul explained that the Friday morning was “normal.” Nicola left home around 8:30 AM to take their two children to school. “When she didn’t return at the usual time,” Paul noted, “I wasn’t overly worried. But at about 10:30 AM, the children’s school rang to say somebody had found their dog and Nicola’s phone by a bench.”
“I mean, that’s not a normal phone call to get,” he emphasized. “She would never have left Willow.” Then, Paul realized, “something isn’t right here,” recalling his panic. “It’s where you feel like your legs have gone. In a situation like that, your mind is going wild. And so I rang the police as I was driving.”
What Were the Family's Experiences During the Search?
The documentary shares the emotional turmoil experienced by the family as the search for Nicola intensified and highlights its impact on Nicola and Paul’s young children. “One morning, I got up,” said Nicola’s mother, Dorothy. “The youngest one, she says: ‘Cold, isn’t it, Nanny?’ She said: ‘I hope mummy’s not cold and hungry.'”
Reflecting on the distressing search, Paul recalled, “The nights were the hardest. In the morning, the hope would be strong. It used to go dark at 4 PM. It used to get to about 3 PM, and then I’d start panicking that I knew it would start going dark in an hour. So we had an hour to find her. And then, obviously, I’d have the girls. The first they’d do when they came out of school was run over and say, ‘Have we found mummy?'”
How Did Amateur Sleuths Impact the Investigation?
As the search for Nicola continued, amateur detectives flocked to Lancashire, driven by a fascination with the case. Their presence raised concerns among police, who feared interference with the ongoing investigation. Concurrently, the family faced an increasing amount of online hate.
“I was getting direct messages from people that I’ve never met—they don’t know me, they don’t know us, they don’t know Nicky,” Paul recounted. He received chilling messages like “You can’t hide” and “We know what you did.” Unable to respond, he expressed feeling “silenced.” He added, “On top of the trauma of the nightmare that we’re in, to think then that all these horrendous things are being said about me towards Nicky—everyone has a limit.”
What Personal Struggles Did Nicola Face?
Days before Nicola’s body was discovered, Lancashire Police publicly revealed that she had “significant issues” with alcohol, exacerbated by her ongoing struggles with menopause.
“It’s not uncommon to go through it young,” said Louise Cunningham, Nicola’s sister. “But Nicky had it tough. And then, I guess, she wasn’t functioning like normal Nicky over about three weeks.”
Paul described the toll on Nicola: “The lack of sleep, irritability, brain fog—she’d be awake for hours in the night, hot sweats every day. Everything was becoming difficult.” The family shared that Nicola had stopped taking her HRT and began drinking to cope. Louise candidly described the situation as “literally normal, weird blip. That’s the most honest answer I can give you.”
In a bid to clarify the narrative surrounding Nicola, police felt compelled to disclose personal details about her struggles with menopause and alcohol. “Because of the commentary that was coming up on social media, Paul was just key to a lot of people’s theories, and we had to negate that,” explained Det Supt Rebecca Smith, a key figure in the investigation.
However, the family wanted to be more pleased about Nicola’s issues being made public. Paul lamented that Nicola would have been “mortified” by the information shared. “Went mad again, didn’t it, in the media,” Louise recalled. The family publicly criticized sections of the press for what they deemed “absolutely appalling” conduct.
How Did the Family React to the Devastating Discovery?
Tragically, the family’s worst fears were realized on 19 February when police were alerted to a body found in the River Wyre. Visibly upset, Det Supt Smith described the moment Nicola was found, noting that she sat in a police tent with Nicola’s body “for quite a long time until she was taken to hospital.”
Reliving the heart-wrenching moment when the family learned of Nicola’s death, Louise said, “I’ll never forget Dad coming into the kitchen. Just completely breaking down and Paul being out in the garden. Just in a complete state.”
“I’ll never forget the cries,” added Nicola’s father, Ernest, as he described hugging his son-in-law Paul, both struggling to process the devastating news.
In the aftermath, a coroner ruled that Ms. Bulley’s death was accidental, stating she had fallen into the river and suffered “cold water shock,” with “no evidence” suggesting suicide. Police condemned social media users on platforms like TikTok for “playing private detectives” and stated they had been “inundated with false information, accusations, and rumors” about the case.
What Is the Family's Plea for Understanding?
“It doesn’t always have to be something sinister linked to something that happens,” Louise pointed out. “Sometimes bad things just happen. I wish it didn’t happen to us. We’re just a normal family. We’ve had an adamant time.”
Reflecting on his daughters, Paul expressed a bittersweet sentiment: “I see her in the girls every single day. I see all these little mannerisms in them, and I’m like, ‘That was Mummy, you know?’ And that is worth everything, I think.”
