CBeebies presenter Katy Ashworth is mystery BBC star at centre of ‘child abduction’ court fight after leaving ‘cheating’ film-maker ex
A ban on naming the former children's television presenter has been lifted
CBEEBIES presenter Katy Ashworth has been revealed as the mystery BBC star at centre of 'child abduction' court fight with her 'cheating' documentary film-maker ex.
A ban on naming the former children's television presenter has been lifted after she brought the child back to Britain after a trip to Australia earlier this year.
It has been reported that she was planning to move to Australia when she discovered her ex-partner, Ben Alcott, was having an affair with four other women.
Alcott - who lives in Australia - had argued that the child was habitually resident in Australia.
He had complained that Ashworth, 30, had been wrong to take the child back to the UK.
But deputy High Court Judge Alex Verdan, who analysed evidence over two days at a private hearing in the Family Division of the High Court in London, has disagreed.
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The judge has concluded that the child was not wrongfully removed from Australia by Ashworth.
Judge Alex Verdan QC rejected the father’s claims, saying: “The clear conclusion I have reached is that the father’s application for custody should be dismissed.
“I do not find the child was habitually resident in Australia at the time and therefore the mother’s removal was not a wrongful removal, also known as an abduction.”
Emails sent by Ashworth to the film maker reportedly said: "Ben. I know everything. I'm done. Have packed up and left."
She is said to have emailed again, after arriving back in the UK, adding: "Thank goodness I found out all the lies before moving to Australia with you for good."
Judge Verdan had allowed reporters to attend the hearing - and report an outline of the case - but had barred the publication of the names of the people involved.
The judge has now produced a written judgement on the case and ruled that Ashworth and Mr Alcott can be identified.
He says the child must not be named in media reports.
The case was heard over two days at the High Court in London.
The couple met in Africa during filming of a TV show and began a long-distance relationship.
Their child was born in Britain three years later and dad Alcott claims the actress agreed to permanently move to Sydney.
A friend of the director had said: “When [the actress] became pregnant the agreement was she would come out to Oz and they would live together.
“Because of her career it took some time to arrange but she quit the BBC and finally arrived in Sydney. The intention was always to have a family life in Australia and bring up [the child] together.”
According to court documents the star later resigned from the BBC and rented out her home before moving to Australia this year.
Four days later she allegedly disappeared and had claimed that she was visiting Sydney on an extended holiday and had booked a return flight, The Times reported.
The dad contacted police and later discovered that she had left the country seven days after arriving.
The documentary maker claims he flew to Britain twice a month to maintain the relationship and they took family holidays in South Africa and America.
Ashworth began her television career presenting I Can Cook, a cookery programme on CBeebies.
She appeared in five Cbeebies Christmas pantomimes and at the inaugural Cbeebies Prom in the Royal Albert Hall.
She resigned from her presentation role at Cbeebies in early 2016.
The Hague Convention on child abduction requires that legal decisions on the custody of a child should be decided by a court in a country where the child is considered to be legally habitually resident.
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