Nicola's parents, Dorothy and Ernest Bulley(Image: Rogan Productions)

Nicola Bulley's devastated parents still speak to her every day and have sad daily ritual

Emotional parents of Nicola Bulley say she was the "glue" of the family and miss her terribly

by · The Mirror

The parents of Nicola Bulley still speak to her every day and kiss a large photo of her in their home to feel close to her. A new BBC documentary, The Search For Nicola Bulley, shows her family coping with her loss after he body was found in the river Wyre last year following a 23 day search.

At one point the BBC cameras show a large photo of Nicola which is in the hallway. Nicola's mum Dorothy says: "When I go to bed. I always kiss to the one on the landing."

Nicola's dad Ernest says: "That seems to follow us around. Every angle you turn, she's looking at you. So when I get undressed i have to shut the door. Haha." More seriously he adds: "I'm always talking to her anyway."

Mother-of-two Nicola disappeared on 27 January 2023 while walking her dog in St Michael's on Wyre, shortly after dropping her daughters at school. Her body was found in a river on 19 February 2023 and an inquest in June last year found she had died due to accidental drowning.

Ms Bulley was walking her dog along the River Wyre when she disappeared( Image: Lancashire Police / SWNS)

The Search For Nicola Bulley explores the media coverage and the impact of "amateur internet sleuths" conducting their own investigations, as well as hearing from Lancashire Police and Ms Bulley's family.

Nicola's parents break down as he remembers the day they knew she had died, and her children had to be told. Her dad Ernest said: "I remember me and Paul just sort of hugged each other. Broken heart."

Nicola's mum Dorothy added:"Paul went to get the girls and went in the lounge with them with the liaison officer. And we stayed in the kitchen."

Nicola's sister opens up about her disappearance( Image: BBC)

And remembering what happened next and what Paul said, dad adds: 'Mummy's died'. I'll never forget the cries. I'll never forget the cries."

The family remain close and are shown having an afternoon together in the garden where Paul lives with his daughters.

A coroner recorded Nicola's death as accidental, and said she fell into the river and suffered "cold water shock", and there was "no evidence" to suggest suicide.

Police had accused "TikTokers" of "playing private detectives" in the area amid her disappearance, and said they were "inundated with false information, accusations and rumours" relating to the case.

Her family have previously hit out at "wildly inaccurate speculation" after the 45-year-old's death.

Her partner shares the nasty trolling he experienced( Image: BBC)

They released a statement through the production company Rogan Productions in June about the new documentary, saying that taking part "wasn't an easy decision".

The family of Nicola Bulley said at the time: “Collectively we thought long and hard about taking part in a documentary about Nikki. It wasn’t an easy decision. Nikki's face and name quickly became very recognisable, but there is so much to share about Nikki the person. Our sole aim is to provide the definitive record on Nikki to ensure she has the legacy that she deserves. Many people have aired their views about her disappearance and her untimely and tragic death, only we can speak about her as a mummy, partner, daughter, and sister. In addition, if our experience of being in the eye of a media storm makes people think twice about how they act and what they say online, then we will have achieved some further good.

“We’d also like to express our sincere thanks to everyone at Rogan Productions who have treated us with great care, respect and compassion throughout the process of making this documentary. It was emotionally draining reliving some of our experiences, but we wanted to do this for Nikki.

“Nikki's loss is felt by us all, every day, we have drawn a huge amount of comfort from the kindness of so many people, and we want to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has taken the time to contact us. We have so appreciated the many kind words and gestures during the worst times of our lives.”

An independent College of Policing review of the investigation into her disappearance found the relationship between police and the media "to be fractured", and urged for it to be rebuilt.

It also criticised the disclosure of personal information about Ms Bulley's health struggles as "avoidable and unnecessary".

* The Search For Nicola Bulley will air on October 3 on BBC One.