62-Year-Old Mayor Leaves Wife To Move In With His 19-Year-Old Mistress
Daisy Tomlinson is 43 years younger than the former mayor.
Motortion Films / Shutterstock John and Jacqui Copsey had been through a lot together. Their connection weathered jealously, divorce, children, an election and even a brain tumor.
While it seemed like the couple who had drifted apart and found each other later in life were built to last, all it took was a pretty 19-year-old girl to tear them apart.
John Copsey met Daisy Tomlinson at a rock concert when he was 60 and she was 17. However, the couple insists that their relationship didn't turn romantic until 2017 when Tomlinson was 19, and added that there was "no abuse of position."
In 2015, he was elected the conservative mayor of Bridlington in East Yorkshire, and prior to that, he was a councilman. A few years before his election, his wife Jacqui Copsey was diagnosed with a brain tumor.
Though radiotherapy successfully treated it, her symptoms left her unable to attend many of her husband's campaign events, and, she says, may have been the reason she didn't see the warning signs sooner.
She only knew Tomlinson as a local teen who belonged to a troupe of performing artists and once posted a photo on Facebook of her wearing her husband's mayoral chains with the caption: "Decided being mayor is not for me — I'm sticking to farming."
"One day John told me: 'Oh, Daisy came up to me in the street and pinched my bum while I was talking to a gentleman.' And I replied: 'Aren’t you the lucky one to have such a young admirer?'"
"I thought her a funny little thing, quite plain and nondescript, and I made a joke of it, because why on earth would such a young girl be interested in someone of John’s age? Later, at a civic lunch, I teased him and told everyone, 'Oh John’s got a follower called Daisy' — and they started singing the song 'Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do, I’m half crazy over the love of you,'" she continued
But it wasn't a joke when Tomlinson's crush didn't fade away like Jacqui thought it would. The teen continued to call John, and even though he said he was brushing her off, she soon learned that the two had been on dates.
She then received a message from a fake Facebook account that said they were seeing each other behind her back at least once a week for the past two years.
"I tried to reason with her, telling her: 'Daisy, you’re young — your heart will soon mend. John is old enough to be your grandfather,'" Jacqui said. "I thought maybe she was looking for a father figure, but she insisted that wasn’t the case. She said that she was in love with John and he with her. I couldn’t believe it."
Tomlinson even had messages to prove that Copsey loved her. A couple of the messages even said that he wanted her to have his child. Jacqui and John already have a son together who is in his 30s.
Jacqui gave her husband plenty of chances to end the affair, but he didn't. And in 2017, she finally kicked him out for good. He moved into a flat with Tomlinson, and the couple is reportedly very happy.
"We are very much in love and intend to marry," he said. "You can put that down as our official engagement. There is nothing more to it."
Copsey still thinks her former husband has lost his mind.
"I don’t know how many times I said to John: 'She’s only 19!'" she added. "I thought he’d come to his senses and realize he was being a silly old fool, flattered by the attention. John was a very good mayor and someone in his position shouldn’t have given her the time of day. It’s just crazy."
And although she said that he sent her a text apologizing for everything, she would still not consider ever taking him back if he tried to come home again.
She concluded, "I do miss him and I don’t like being on my own, but I’d be a complete idiot to have him back. I can’t humiliate myself further. I gave him all those chances. He didn’t have to do this.
I’d be unhappy if Daisy was 50 or 60, but the fact she’s only 19 makes it so horrible. She’s so young, and he’s old enough to know better. It makes me wonder if John ever really loved me, or if he knows anything about love at all."
Emily Blackwood is a freelance writer, editor and journalist who covers small business, pop culture, travel, health and wellness.
Editor's Note: This article was originally posted on October 2017 and was updated with the latest information.