The ‘Bride and Prejudice’ star, who was falsely reported as dead last month – only to reveal a week later she was still alive – has shared her take on the ‘horrific’ ordeal.
Dannii Erskine, speaking to Chron Australia outside her home in Rosebud on the Mornington Peninsula, said the whole saga was a gruesome prank orchestrated by an obsessed Geelong-area fan who got sucked into her social Media accounts hacked.
The fan reportedly released an obituary and funeral details after gaining access to her Instagram.
The story was picked up days later when a person claiming to be Dannii’s sister – who Dannii believes was actually the same woman who hacked her social media – emailed her death to a reality TV Podcast “confirmed”. The email said Dannii died on April 28 in a car accident caused by a drunk driver.
Dannii suspects the “stalker” who started the rumor is a former moderator of a Facebook group she started years ago. Chron Australia cannot publish her name for legal reasons.
Dannii Erskine, the ‘Bride and Prejudice’ star, who was reported dead last month but revealed she was still alive just a week later, has been pictured for the first time since the ‘horrific’ ordeal. In exclusive photos obtained by Chron Australia, she was seen leaving her home in Rosebud on the Mornington Peninsula on Monday morning and walking her dogs
In a video interview (above), Dannii said the whole saga was a gruesome prank orchestrated by an obsessed Geelong-area fan who hacked into their social media accounts
An angry Dannii said she was particularly “disgusting” about her ex-husband Denton Ansley (right), who she hasn’t spoken to in 18 months because he spoke out before she knew if she was truly dead
Dannii also denied “cruel” speculation that she was somehow involved in faking her own death, admitting that she and her family were “humiliated” by the attention.
“I didn’t fake my own death. There were too many casualties [among the Bride and Prejudice cast] The way it is, and we all know how sad that was,” she said.
“Not only is it disgusting and cruel, it’s humiliating for everyone — not just for myself but for my family.” If I wanted to disappear, I would just shut everything down [social media accounts] down. It’s just common sense really; I don’t understand.’
Dannii has denied “cruel” claims that she was involved in faking her own death, adding that she and her family were “humiliated” by the press attention
Dannii struggled down the porch steps, his foot bandaged. This comes from an operation she recently underwent in hospital following a non-fatal car accident last September
When asked why she didn’t immediately stop reporting her death, Dannii said she was “advised not to make any comments or posts on social media” as she was in the hospital at the time and was being deprived of one foot surgery recovered
Dannii went on to reveal that she was in “incredible pain” after an ankle reconstruction on May 1, stemming from injuries sustained in a “real life car accident” in September 2022
An angry Dannii said she was particularly “disgusting” towards her ex-husband Denton Ansley, who she hadn’t spoken to in 18 months because he spoke out before he knew if she was really dead.
“I’m disgusted with my husband – my ex-husband, sorry – for the way he spoke about me.” , she said.
Dannii said she went through “two extremely stressful weeks” after the hoax.
The emotional toll was clear when Dannii opened up about the brutal cyberbullying she was subjected to at the hands of trolls who falsely accused her of faking her own death.
“That’s why people commit suicide,” she said.
“You are evil. What the people behind write [my back] because they are too scared to confront me. “They type behind a keyboard and say all these nasty comments when they can’t be face to face with me.”
Dannii said she went through “two extremely stressful weeks” after the hoax
The emotional toll was clear when Dannii opened up about the brutal cyberbullying she was subjected to at the hands of trolls who falsely accused her of faking her own death
She also revealed how a common cybersecurity blunder left her vulnerable to a malicious hacker, confessing, “I’ve had the same password for about 15 years and it’s, let’s say, a very simple password.”
When asked why she didn’t immediately stop reporting her death, Dannii said she was “advised not to make any comments or posts on social media” as she was in the hospital at the time and was being deprived of one foot surgery recovered.
“They said, ‘You need to focus on your recovery. It’ll only stress you out,” she explained. “Mental health is a big thing these days and people don’t understand that it’s wrong and it’s disgusting.”
Dannii went on to reveal that she was in “incredible pain” after an ankle reconstruction on May 1, stemming from injuries sustained in a “real life car accident” in September 2022.
The death hoax began when a person allegedly claimed to be Dannii’s “sister” Dee The TV star died in hospital after a horrific car accident in North Melbourne that left her brain dead
This obituary also appeared on Dannii’s hacked Instagram account
Dannii said the clash in September resulted in her being hospitalized and undergoing three months of rehabilitation.
In her interview with Chron Australia, Dannii revealed how a common cybersecurity blunder left her vulnerable to a malicious hacker.
“I’ve had the same password for about 15 years, and it’s, let’s say, a very simple password,” she confessed.
“I shared that [password] with quite a lot of people.’
Dannii’s “death” was announced on May 2 by the So Dramatic podcast. The report was later followed up by various media outlets including News.com.au, 7News and Chron Australia among others.
A person who falsely claimed to be her “sister” Dee said Dannii died in hospital after a horrific car crash in North Melbourne that left her brain dead.
‘As [Dannii] When she went through a green light, a drunk driver gave her a T-Bone. “She was alive and was taken to Royal Melbourne Hospital,” the person who falsely claimed to be her sister told So Dramatic via email.
“She passed away on the morning of the 29th.” [of April] at 12:01 am… She is loved, greatly missed and it was a terrible tragedy. Please be safe on the streets. That can happen to anybody.’
This claim was then disputed by Victoria Police and the Coroner, who said no accidents or fatalities of this nature had been reported at the time.
Police sources also confirmed to Chron Australia last week that Dannii is “alive and well” according to their internal systems.
Dannii’s “death” was announced by the So Dramatic podcast on May 2 – but this claim was soon disputed by Victoria Police and the Coroner, who said no accidents or deaths of this nature had been reported at the time
Police sources also confirmed to Chron Australia last week that Dannii is “healthy and sane” according to their internal systems