Victoria Derbyshire breaks down in tears during emotional visit memorial for domestic violence victims

VICTORIA Derbyshire broke down in tears as she joined a memorial for domestic violence victims in her hometown.

In the latest episode of Channel 5’s No Place Like Home, newsreader Victoria visited major historical areas of Lanchashire, near where she grew up.

However, the final stop held a particular poignance for Victoria, as she was shown the world’s oldest known memorial to a domestic violence victim.

The tale hit particularly close to home as her mother, Maureen, is a survivor of domestic violence at the hands of Victoria’s dad.

Heading to Holcombe, Victoria was told of Ellen Strange, who in 1761, after an argument with her husband John Bradley in a local pub, was murdered on the moors by him.

Bradley was arrested but found not guilty of the crime, but friends and family of Ellen took it upon themselves to commemorate her by laying stones in her memory where her body was found.

Since then, it has become a tradition in the parish for people to lay a new stone on the memorial in honour of those who have died due to domestic violence.

In a brief laying ceremony, Victoria became overwhelmed as she helped read out the names of over two dozen people who had been killed by their partners over the past year.

By the end, she broke down in tears.

“It’s significant and important that people like Ellen Strange are remembered, because it reminds us that this has been going on for too long. And although some progress has been made, there is still so much work to do,” she told cameras.

The normally stoic newscaster then cracked as she admitted: “I feel like really want to cry,” before bursting into tears, before asking those around her if “they could have a cuddle”.

No Place Like Home continues Wednesdays at 9pm on Channel 5.