Who Was Rachel Nickell’s Boyfriend André Hanscombe?

RACHEL Nickell was murdered in 1992 in front of her young son Alex.

Her boyfriend at the time was Alex’s father, Andre Hanscombe. That’s what we know about him.

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Who Was Rachel Nickell’s Boyfriend André Hanscombe?

After her death, son Alex and father Andre Hanscombe moved to Barcelona.

As a teenager, Alex, then a yoga teacher living with his father in Spain, got into trouble with the police and bumped into the wrong people at school.

He said: “While my father was once again struggling with suicidal thoughts, tensions between us had reached boiling point and the smallest spark was enough to start the fire.

“Back then, I didn’t always appreciate the trials my dad was going through or how difficult it was for him to raise me as a single parent.”

In recent years, Alex and Andre have studied yoga together and lived in India for a while.

He said, “Throughout our rollercoaster ride, we’ve remained very close and talked about everything.”

What did André Hanscombe say about Rachel Nickell’s death?

Andre described why he didn’t want anyone to know what he and Alex went through on Lorraine.

He said: “It’s strange. As Alex says, it’s not always what it looks like on the outside.

“Just the fact that you are caring for a young child that takes so much energy.

“The schedule, the routine, getting fed, getting clothes on your back, going through the daily activities in a way that permeates the routine.

“Another thing that people find really difficult to understand is that during the day when he was good, he was very good.

“So his desire to go out and play and get on with life was good, but it was only at night that the demons were really haunted by nightmares.”

Andre also admitted in a 2018 interview that he had moved to Barcelona because he was worried about Alex’s life.

He said: “There was a chance he could find us. I felt safer abroad.

“I just had to do what I had to do to make sure Alex was okay, that was my first responsibility.”

Andre has also said he forgives Rachel’s killer, Robert Napper, and feels “sympathy” for him.

He also wrote Colin Stagg a letter apologizing for thinking he killed Rachel.

Andre has also written a book about Rachel called The Last Thursday In July: Memoir of Rachel Nickell.

Where is Andre Hanscombe now?

It is believed that he still lives in Barcelona.

He appeared on Good Morning Britain alongside his son in 2022 via video link from the Spanish city.