What happened to Nicola Bulley? The British woman, 45, was missing for more than three weeks before police found her body in a river in Lancashire.
The 45-year-old Nicola Bulley, who was last seen in St Michael’s in Wyre, Lancashire, at around 9.15am, vanished on 27 January 2023, while walking her dog.
The tragic incident happened after after dropping her daughters off at school.
After a three-week hunt for the missing mum, she was confirmed dead after her lifeless body was found in a river.
Her two young daughters reportedly broke down in tears as their distraught dad told them: “Mummy’s lost.”
Here’s everything we know about Nicola Bulley; how she died, parents, family, children, ex-husband, partner, job, and more.
Who was Nicola Bulley?
Nicola Jane Bulley was born in 1977 in Essex, United Kingdom.
Nicola Bulley was a 45-year-old mother who worked as a mortgage adviser.
Nicola is 5ft 3ins, with light brown shoulder-length hair, and speaks with an Essex accent.
She lived with her partner and children in Inskip, Lancashire.
She was educated at William de Ferrers School in South Woodham Ferrers and moved to Lancashire in the late 1990s.
She was born to parents Ernest Bulley (father) and Dot Bulley (mother) who is 72 years old.
Nicola vanished on 27 January 2023, when walking her dog on a path close to her home, and a serious search was launched to find her.
While she was missing, her parents mom and dad pleaded for anyone with information on their daughter’s disappearance to come forward.
Per TheSun, her sister Louise Cunningham also spoke about the pain and suffering the family endured.
Friends of Nicola organised volunteer search parties in conjunction with Lancashire Police in the hope of finding their friend.
Nicola’s brother-in-law Stephen Cunningham — married to her sister Louise — said: “The whole family are struggling to understand what’s happened and worried beyond words.”
At the time, friends of Nicola also expressed their frustration with amateur sleuths taking the investigation into their own hands.
Tragically, the mum-of-two’s body was found in the river on February 19 three weeks after she disappeared.
A 143-page report into Lancashire Police’s handling of the case has now been released.
The review, led by the College of Policing, criticised the force for “insufficient focus” and errors of judgement.
When and where did Nicola Bulley go missing?
Nicola was last seen on January 27, 2023, in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire, at 9.10am.
The 5ft 3in mother-of-two was last spotted walking along a river path with her dog.
At the time of her disappearance, Ms Bulley was wearing a long black gilet jacket with a hood and had her hair tied in a ponytail.
She had black jeans on with olive green ankle wellies.
Nicola’s phone and dog’s lead were found on a bench. Her dog was also found safe and well.
During a press conference on February 3, 2023, police said their “main working hypothesis” is that Nicola had “sadly fallen in the river”.
Officers sparked fury when they revealed the mum’s struggle with alcohol and the perimenopause.
Police said in a statement on February 15, 2023, that the mum of two had been classed as a “high risk” missing person. This was due to “vulnerabilities”, including issues with alcohol.
Nicola’s family elaborated that she suffers from significant side effects of perimenopause, such as brain fog and restless sleep.
Before her disappearance, Nicola had stopped taking HRT, a medication that helped manage symptoms of perimenopause, due to its intense side effects.
On February 19, 2023, Lancashire Police stated they had found a body less than a mile from where Nicola was last seen.
The next day cops shared the tragic update that the body found was Nicola’s.
They said: “Sadly, we are now able to confirm that yesterday we recovered Nicola Bulley from the River Wyre.
“Nicola’s family have been informed and are of course devastated. Our thoughts are with them at this time as well as with all her loved ones and the wider community.
“We recognise the huge impact that Nicola’s disappearance has had on her family and friends, but also on the people of St Michael’s.
“We would like to thank all of those who have helped during what has been a hugely complex and highly emotional investigation.
“Today’s development is not the outcome any of us would have wanted, but we hope that it can at least start to provide some answers for Nicola’s loved ones, who remain foremost in our thoughts.
“The case is now being handled by HM Coroner.”
Who was Nicola Bulley’s boyfriend?
At the time Nicola Bulley vanished and was declared dead days after, she was in a relationship with her partner, Paul Ansell.
44-year-old Paul Ansell is an engineer by trade.
Bulley and Paul met in a pub and had been together for 12 years before her death.
The pair share a £330,000 detached home in Inskip.
Nicola had previously been married to businessman Simon Booth.
He is now the partner of Coronation Street star Jodie Prenger, who plays Glenda Shuttleworth in the ITV1 soap.
When contacted at his home in Pilling on the Lancashire coast, Mr Booth said he did not want to comment out of respect for Nicola’s parents, adding that he had not seen his former wife for 12 years.
How many children did Nicola Bulley have?
Before Nicola Bulley was pronounced dead after her lifeless body was spotted by a man and a woman on 19 February 2023, she was a proud mother.
She had two children – all daughters whose names are Harriet, nine, and Sophia, six, with Paul Ansell.
In February, two young daughters of Bulley broke down in tears as their distraught dad told them: “Mummy’s lost.”
Her mum Dorothy revealed: “He just said, ‘Mummy’s lost’.”
Paul’s dad David said: “They cried their eyes out.”
A pal of Nicola spoke for her two heartbroken daughters and said: “We just want her home.”
Emma White added: “We’ve got two little girls wanting their mummy, so if anyone has any information please just come forward.”
She said Nicola’s partner Paul was “being as strong as possible” for the children.
Nicola’s boyfriend, Ansell openly spoke about the hell the family was put through.
Ansell told reporters: “My whole focus is my two girls, just staying as strong as I can for them.
“I’m scared that if I put focus into anything else it’s going to take my focus off that.
“Just hoping to goodness that anything comes out from the interview yesterday no matter how tiny.”
Ansell has described how the family was going through a “perpetual hell” as they tried to locate Ms Bulley.
FAQ
What likely happened to Nicola Bulley? Per BBC, the inquest, which concluded in June 2023, determined that Bulley’s death was due to accidental drowning.
How did Nicola Bulley fall in the water? The 45-year-old mortgage adviser was walking her springer spaniel when she accidentally fell into the water in St Michael’s, Lancashire, with experts stating it would have been “almost impossible to swim against the current”.
Where did they find Nicholas dog? Nicola Bulley’s dog, Willow, was later found without her harness and leash on. The dog’s harness and lead was also found on a bench. Her pet dog, a springer spaniel, was found loose and in an ‘agitated’ state between the river and bench and was found around an hour after she was last seen.
Why did it take so long to find Nicola Bulley? Ms Bulley’s body was found three weeks after she disappeared, with a coroner later finding she had fallen into the river accidentally. A second theory is that Ms Bulley’s body gradually moved down the river and the search teams were unable to find it because of the muddy and unclear water.