Nicola Bulley's grave continues to draw 'ghouls' one year after TikTok frenzy

'We just wish they'd leave us alone but they still believe these mad conspiracy theories'

The resting place of Nicola Bulley is attracting self-proclaimed 'ghouls' who became fixated on her case through TikTok, according to reports from concerned locals.

A year after the 45-year-old woman went missing while walking her dog along the River Wyre, the small community of St Michael's on Wyre continues to grapple with the aftermath of the international media frenzy that ensued.

The disappearance triggered widespread speculation on social media, leading to unsanctioned searches and even the emergence of amateur detectives.

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Despite reassurances from the police about ongoing thorough investigations, some individuals resorted to breaking into abandoned buildings, while others initiated nighttime patrols. Confrontations between locals and strangers shaking gates and wandering through front gardens became a concerning trend.

The case also gained rapid global attention, resulting in over 6,500 international articles in a single day. Police had to issue a dispersal notice to keep the public away when armchair detectives swarmed the village.

A year later, villagers are criticising the conspiracy theorists and TikTok 'ghouls' who continue to visit the peaceful village, the Mirror reports. A local dog walker, who wished to remain anonymous, told the sun: "It's morbid. You see all these tragedy tourists who even come to stare at her grave in the churchyard.

"And then we still have these TikTok nutters who you seen in the bushes with their cameras or by the river. We just wish they'd leave us alone but they still believe these mad conspiracy theories."

Budding Sherlocks are still hooked on false theories about her disappearance and TikTok videos with her name have gathered over 505.2 million views. The body of the mum-of-two was eventually found more than three weeks after she went missing in a patch of reeds beside a river, just over 1km from where she was last seen.

Nicola had joined a work call while on a dog walk at 9:01am, camera off and on mute, sent a few messages and crossed paths with another walker who knew her and the dog. About 15 minutes after she was last seen, just 25 minutes after first joining the work call, another walker found her phone on a bench next to the river, still on call.

Her dog was untethered and hanging around the bench, but there was no sign of her sparking a huge search for the missing person. One TikTok detective caused anger in the village after he was spotted digging up woodland while another influencer was arrested and charged with a public order offence after a confrontation with a local.

An inquest into Nicola's death concluded on June 27 that she had fallen into the cold water and almost immediately drowned. A report published in November listed several factors that impacted Lancashire Police's handling of communications and the media after Nicola went missing.

This included "a global social media frenzy, including amateur 'detectives' on the ground in St Michael's on Wyre posting content to social media channels." It also noted the "almost unprecedented" level of mainstream media attention that put pressure on the force.

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