NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather forecasts

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / World

UK stalker who thought he was Greek hero Odysseus bombarded designer called Penelope with explicit texts

By Telegraph Reporters
Daily Telegraph UK·
13 Feb, 2017 07:34 PM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Ian Stewart stalked Penelope Hulme, claiming he was the Greek hero Odysseus. Photos / Penelope Hulme Facebook, 123RF

Ian Stewart stalked Penelope Hulme, claiming he was the Greek hero Odysseus. Photos / Penelope Hulme Facebook, 123RF

A UK interior designer was stalked by an obsessed admirer who compared their relationship to the epic ancient Greek poem The Odyssey.

Penelope Hulme, 53, was bombarded with more than 700 explicit texts from painter and decorator Ian Stewart who used her first name to proclaim himself as her self-styled "saviour".

The infatuated 48-year-old, who had previously worked for his victim's millionaire ex-husband, equated Hulme to Penelope the loyal wife of the legendary King of Ithaca whose exploits were told by Homer.

And although Hulme was dating another man, Stewart from Sale, Greater Manchester, sent her a series of messages over a three-year period demanding she leave him so they could start an affair together.

One text read: "I am your saviour and I can take you to another world. Everything about you is beautiful. I love you."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Others said: "I just sent our pics to an American medium. She says something going, you feel disconnected. It's me Odysseus, I will call soon. I am Odysseus."

Hulme, who lives in Hale, near Altrincham, urged Stewart to stop contacting her but he persisted with his texts and was reported to the police.

Law graduate Hulme, a mother of two who specialises in upmarket interior home design for wealthy clients said: "I feel this man is a threat and I am worried about what he might do next.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"He seems deranged and delusional and says he wants to take me to another world. I feel disgusted, insulted and humiliated by these messages. I feel the messages undermine my well-being and my dignity.

"I have gone from being confident to be scared about leaving the house and my work is now also being affected. I cannot concentrate and my imagination runs wild.

"Dealing with this man is a waste of my time and I am focusing on writing this and not doing my work. I could lose my job. I am very worried that I could be the next rape victim."

Manchester Magistrates' Court heard Hulme had known Stewart since 2007 after he did some decorating work for her then husband Martin, 60, who was chairman of a large property development company.

Prosecuting Andrea Griffiths said: "It was a professional relationship. She works as an interior designer and work was passed between her and the defendant. But she then divorced her husband and the pair lost contact.

"Later in 2012, the complainant bumped into the defendant in the street and she was in a bad way due to her divorce. He offered to help her fix some issues in her home telling her he didn't want to be paid.

"She repaid him by referring him to some of her clients and giving him business. But from then he started contacting her in quite a strange way.

"During that time period from 2013 she found him quite difficult and intrusive and she asked him to stop contacting her.

"However, he continued to contact her referring to himself as the Greek god, Odysseus who saved and married Penelope. Penelope's partner at the time contacted him and told him not to speak to her again.

"But he then started to contact her again via text message. She felt shocked that he had continued to contact her and blocked him.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Over the next few days she received messages from another number. The messages were intense and frequent. She said she found the messages so sickening that she decided to phone the police.

"She said his contact was unhealthy, unnatural and very much unwanted. There were over 700 messages sent to her phone - none of which she replied to.

"On the 10th of October last year, the defendant sent a number of messages. Some are sexual and some are religious.

"He talks particularly about being her saviour and taking her to another world."

At 11:15 that night he sent a message saying: "I love you and I want to suck your p---y all night."

Another message said: "You make me horny. Everything about you is beautiful. Don't let that dog f--- you, I will. I love you."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The prosecutor said: "Stalking can take many forms - in this case the contact is via text messaging. What affect that had on her was to alter her lifestyle."

Stewart admitted stalking Hulme between October and November last year under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.

Defending himself, he said: "She agreed to meet me for a coffee. I do not know what all that was about. I used to work for her and she has gone on like I have stalked her but I was just messaging her.

"I am so in disagreement with what she says, I have never hurt anyone in my life."

During the hearing, a probation officer said: "He is not very accepting of the offence this has had on the victim. He does not seem to have any understanding of the alarm and distress this has caused the lady.

"They have known one another for a few years and there seems to be an obsession that stopped a few years ago and then started again in October. He was telling me that she started it. He has said that he won't make contact again.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"He has no relevant previous convictions and is self-employed and works as a painter and decorator. He if fit and well and has no history and it's mental health services."

Stewart was ordered to complete a 12-month community order and fined £300 (NZ$523) with further orders to pay a £85 (NZ$148) victim surcharge and £150 (NZ$261) in costs.

He was banned from contacting Mrs Hulme indefinitely under the terms of a restraining order.

This article was originally published by The Telegraph.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from World

live
World

Watch: World reacts as first American pope elected, takes name Leo XIV

08 May 08:59 PM
World

'So good for both countries': Trump touts new UK trade pact

08 May 08:46 PM
World

‘Great honour’: World leaders welcome Leo, first US pope

08 May 07:30 PM

One tiny baby’s fight to survive

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from World

Watch: World reacts as first American pope elected, takes name Leo XIV
live

Watch: World reacts as first American pope elected, takes name Leo XIV

08 May 08:59 PM

Thousands packed into St Peter’s Square and cheered as the new Pope appeared.

'So good for both countries': Trump touts new UK trade pact

'So good for both countries': Trump touts new UK trade pact

08 May 08:46 PM
‘Great honour’: World leaders welcome Leo, first US pope

‘Great honour’: World leaders welcome Leo, first US pope

08 May 07:30 PM
Xi Jinping in Moscow as Ukraine accuses Russia of violating truce

Xi Jinping in Moscow as Ukraine accuses Russia of violating truce

08 May 07:01 PM
Connected workers are safer workers 
sponsored

Connected workers are safer workers 

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP