A retired teacher alleges she was evicted from her "beloved" £15k beach hut because she was too glamorous for her "jealous" neighbours. Michelle Spicer became involved in a row with locals over a number of issues which eventually landed her in court.
The council subsequently removed her "mermaid haven" in Goring-by-Sea, West Sussex, in October 2021, the Mirror reports. Speaking previously in Worthing Magistrates' Court, the 60-year-old said her relationship with fellow residents became bitter after they became increasingly envious of her flashy car and model work.
This week, she appeared in court again, where she denied breaching a harassment order which was granted last September that stopped her from going within 200m of another woman called Victoria Harvey or to the David Lloyd Gym in town.
Ms Spicer became the first person to be removed from a beach hut in 25 years after the Worthing Borough Council removed the hut, which Michelle bought in 2020 after her divorce. This happened after several fierce disputes between her and the locals, which included Ms Spicer pushing for a public toilet to reopen, accusations of antisocial behaviour, noise complaints and the parking of her Mercedes.
Ms Spicer claims that riled up locals left her abusive notes and even put dog poo on her car. Despite the toilet sitting on council-owned land, locals had to pay a service charge for its upkeep, and disagreed with her campaign.
The notes called her an "idiot" and said she "p***ed" residents off - but she insists she was entitled to park her vehicle where she had. Her neighbours, who she described as bullies, eventually reported her to the council but Ms Spicer maintained she had done "nothing but good for the community".
Speaking at the end of 2021, she said: “I went to the beach hut one morning a few weeks ago and the locks were changed - then it was removed without my knowledge. I am just a beach hut owner quietly enjoying the area because it's good for my mental health - but neighbours started bullying me and conspiring against me.
"I don't think there is anything wrong with my parking - and I only tried to get a toilet re-opened. I did nothing but good for the community - but they're jealous of me because I'm glamorous."
During the recent trial, which was adjourned after prosecutors said they had not seen a defence expert report, Ms Spicer only spoke to confirm her name, date of birth, address and say she understood the case would not be heard.
Later outside of the courtroom, she claimed that champagne would be "popping" when she won. The trial was adjourned to July 5 at the same court.
Worthing Borough Council claimed they had "no choice" but to intervene after receiving a significant number of complaints about her.
A spokesperson for Worthing Borough Council previously said: “We are sorry it has come to this but for the first time in about 25 years we have had to take eviction action at one of our beach huts. The number of complaints received from local residents really left us with no choice but to conclude that Ms Spicer has breached the terms of her lease.”
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