WELSH singer Duffy has shared a detailed and traumatic account of being drugged, raped and held captive.

In a long post published to a web page (www.duffywords.com), the 35-year-old, who was born in Bangor and raised in Nefyn, Gwynedd, told of her "dark" story in order to "help others who have suffered".

The singer, famed for hits such as 'Mercy' and ' Warwick Avenue', firs revealed her ordeal via an Instagram post published in February 2020.

However, she has now revealed further details through the webpage post published during the last few days.

Duffy, full names Aimee Duffy, says she was drugged at a restaurant on her birthday before being held captive in her own home. She was then taken to a foreign country.

The statement on the webpage states: “It was my birthday, I was drugged at a restaurant, I was drugged then for four weeks and travelled to a foreign country.

“I can’t remember getting on the plane and came round in the back of a travelling vehicle. I was put into a hotel room and the perpetrator returned and raped me.

"I remember the pain and trying to stay conscious in the room after it happened. I was stuck with him for another day, he didn’t look at me, I was to walk behind him, I was somewhat conscious and withdrawn.

“I could have been disposed of by him.”

Duffy's statement added: “I am no longer ashamed that something deeply hurt me, anymore. I believe that if you speak from the heart within you, the heart within others will answer.

“As dark as my story is, I do speak from my heart, for my life, and for the life of others, whom have suffered the same.”

Duffy says she escaped by “fleeing”, but added that she “cannot remember getting home”. She also says that she had been distant from everyone for the last ten years.

She added: "You may wonder where was my family? Those who wanted to help - were just too far away. The toll of me hiding, this last decade, also meant I was estranged from all. What happened was not only a betrayal to me, to my life, a violence that nearly killed me, it stole a lot from other people too. I was just not the same person for so long. Rape is like living murder, you are alive, but dead. All I can say is it took an extremely long time, sometimes feeling never ending, to reclaim the shattered pieces of me."

She says she initially feared going to the police, but eventually told a female officer after someone threatened to "out her story".

In the statement, Duffy also thanks her psychologist for helping her through the trauma, adding she feels she can “leave this decade behind” and is now “free”.

She also hints at releasing further music in the future, with her last album being released in 2010.

She adds: "I know this much though, I owe it to myself to release a body of work someday, though I very much doubt I will ever be the person people once knew. My music will be measured on the merit of its quality and this story will be something I experienced and not something that describes me."