Colin Firth and his wife of 20 years, Livia, briefly split up in 2015, it has been revealed. The couple have recently been embroiled in a police investigation after Livia accused a family friend, Marco Brancaccia, of stalking her. The couple's representative released a statement to The Times, which read: "A few years ago Colin and Livia privately made the decision to separate. During that time Livia briefly became involved with former friend Mr Brancaccia. The Firths have since reunited. Subsequently, Mr Brancaccia carried out a frightening campaign of harassment over several months, much of which is documented. For obvious reasons, the Firths have never had any desire to make this matter public."
© Photo: Getty ImagesColin and Livia briefly split in 2015
Marco has since responded to the claims, passionately refuting claims of stalking. He told the newspaper: "We were romantically involved, she wanted to leave Colin for me. My 'stalking' consisted of two messages via WhatsApp after she ended our relationship in June 2016, and an email. I wrote an email to Colin about my relationship with Livia, which I now regret sending, and she filed a complaint against me for stalking out of fear that I could go public with what she had revealed to me about her marriage and work. In a year she sent me hundreds of messages of love, photos and videos, even a diary."
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Marco's lawyer said: "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." Italy's Carabinieri police have confirmed that they are investigating the matter, with a spokesperson saying: "A complaint has been made by the couple to prosecutors and the police have been investigating."
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