Livia Firth has accused a childhood friend of stalking her and threatening to ruin her marriage. Police in Italy are investigating journalist Marco Brancaccia, a longtime friend of Livia and her husband Colin Firth, who is said to have made threatening telephone calls and texts to Livia, before emailing photographs to Colin, according to The Times.
Firth has complained to Italian prosecutors, who have started an investigation and reportedly seized Brancaccia's computer and phone.
Livia is of Italian heritage and was born in Rome, while Colin gained Italian citizenship last year. The pair married in Italy and have a house in Umbria.
A spokesman for Italy's Carabinieri police told the newspaper: "A complaint has been made by the couple to prosecutors and the police have been investigating."
It's alleged that Brancaccia - a journalist with the Italian news agency Ansa - began harassing Livia in September 2016 because he didn't want to be cut out of her life, claims La Repubblica.
The publication also alleges that he threatened to write compromising articles about the couple, and added that Livia was living in fear that he was following her because of the stalking and threatening messages.
Prosecutors have since put in a request to judges in Rome to take the case to trial, with a spokesperson for Firth adding: "There is an ongoing criminal prosecution and it would be inappropriate to comment in this circumstance."
Meanwhile, Brancaccia's lawyers denied the allegations, telling The Times: "Mr Brancaccia has absolutely nothing to do with the events described and has already filed a legal complaint to protect his good name and his honour, and to be able to supply his version of the truth of what happened.
"The reconstruction of the events by La Repubblica does not correspond to what really happened."
Along with film producing, Livia also founded Eco-Age - a brand consultancy that advises fashion companies about environmental sustainability. As an Oxfam ambassador, she is renowned for her charity campaigning, and is a founding member of Annie Lennox's women's advocacy group, The Circle.
