Bigamist jailed after wedding photos posted on Facebook
Court hears Adrian Linham, 43, led a double life and married for a second time while his loyal wife of seven years Liz, 37, thought their marriage was running smoothly
Adrian Linham on his wedding days with, left, first wife Liz and right, second wife Hayley Photo: (SWNS)
By Agency
12:53PM GMT 13 Feb 2015
A bigamist flew to Mexico to marry his second wife on the same beach where he honeymooned with the first - who only found out about it on Facebook.
Adrian Linham, 43, secretly dated Hayley Totterdell for three years while his loyal wife of seven years Liz, 37, thought their marriage was running smoothly.
Liz Linham and first wife Adrian Linham at their wedding in May 2007
Linham frequently told Liz he was going to Bangor, south Wales, to work for weeks at a time - but was actually living just 16 miles away with Hayley.
Adrian Linham with his second wife Hayley Totterdell
He then secretly flew out to a paradise beach to wed Hayley in front of her family and friends - who were all blissfully unaware he was already married.
Liz knew nothing about the ceremony until she received a letter from her mother-in-law saying she was sorry to see they had divorced and Linham had remarried.
Mother-of-one Liz then went online and found dozens of pictures of her grinning husband embracing his new bride - on the same beach where they went on honeymoon.
Linham even had the same best man at both weddings.
The scuba diving instructor has now been jailed for 18 weeks for bigamy - but new wife Hayley is sticking by her husband.
Hayley is sticking with Adrian
After the hearing Liz revealed the shocking web of lies spun by her husband, including how he:
* Faked his own mother's death so he could spend time with both women on Christmas Day.
* Tricked Liz into re-decorating Hayley's holiday home by telling her it belonged to his boss.
* Abandoned her just 12 hours after she miscarried their child so he could sneak away to be with Hayley.
Mother-of-one Liz said: "I didn't think stuff like this happened in real life and I certainly didn't think it would ever happen to me.
"I genuinely didn't know what was going on. I never thought for a moment that he'd gone and married someone else.
"It has completely altered the way I look at everyone. I look at people now, who I have known and trusted for years, and think 'can I really trust you'?."
Liz and Linham met at his brother's wedding in 2000 and became an item in July 2006 after he divorced his first wife.
They got engaged in 2007 and married just months later at Rookery Manor in Somerset before jetting off to Riviera Maya in Mexico for their honeymoon.
But throughout their relationship Linham would only stay at their marital home near Bristol once or twice a month because he claimed to be working as a scuba diving instructor in Bangor.
In spite of this Liz thought their marriage was still going strong and she gave up work to look after their daughter, now aged four.
Liz Linham and Adrian Linham at their wedding with Liz's parents
"He would tell me he loved me every day and he'd say how he couldn't be without me," she said.
But she was shocked to discover that he had been leading a double life and had been seeing Hayley Totterdell for more than three years.
Liz was aware of Hayley's existence but had been told she was merely the wife of Adrian's psychiatrist - despite the fact she had divorced years ago.
Hayley was blissfully unaware that Linham was already married and only found out about his previous marriage when he was arrested.
They are believed to have got engaged in August 2012 after he proposed on the same beach where he honeymooned with Liz.
Then in May 2014 Adrian told Liz he was going away for a longer stretch in Bangor to oversee exams - but actually flew back to Mexico for his wedding to Hayley.
Adrian Linham with his second wife Hayley Totterdell and her family at their wedding in Mexico
None of Hayley's family knew he was already married and he is believed to have told best man Mark Stapleton that he had already divorced Liz.
After the wedding Linham returned to the UK and carried on living his double life as if nothing had changed.
Liz only found out about the wedding three months later when she received a letter from Linham's mother, who she had not spoken to for a while.
"I got a letter from his mum on 21 August 2014," she said. "It said that she was sorry to hear Adrian and I had gotten divorced and that she hoped I was dealing with it ok.
"She then went on to say that she had been on Facebook and seen Adrian's wedding pictures to Hayley and hoped that his new marriage hadn't affected me too much.
"It was such a huge shock to me, I went on to Facebook and found the pictures pretty much straight away.
"I didn't read the whole letter - I tore it up into tiny pieces and threw it away, I had just picked out certain parts of the letter.
"Those parts of the letter are still whirling around in my head, especially the bit about 'Mrs Hayley Linham' - she took his name.
"I called him to confront him but he yet again denied it - I just went into meltdown.
"He totally denied it and told me not to be so silly. But that was it - I haven't spoken to him since.
"It's just been like a total nightmare. I actually remember saying this is the kind of thing you'd read about in the newspapers and magazines."
Liz has since discovered the catalogue of lies which Linham told her in order to conduct his secret double life.
She recalled how she waited at home all day one Christmas Day for Linham to return home only for him to arrive late in the evening.
It later transpired he had spent the day with Hayley before telling her his mother had died in order to duck out and return to his wife.
He then returned home to Hayley, describing his mother's funeral in full detail - despite the fact she is still alive.
In December 2013 Liz suffered a miscarriage at 7pm one evening but Adrian left her by 7am the next morning to go and see Hayley.
The love rat also tricked loyal Liz into redecorating Hayley's second home in Swanage, Dorset - asking her to paint the bedroom, and her children's bedrooms, convincing her it was his boss' home.
Liz said: "I'd always known about Hayley but the way he'd speak of her was just 'oh she's loaded, her and her husband have got more money than sense so I do as many jobs as possible at their house to rinse them'.
"He even took me to Hayley's second home in Swanage on two separate occasions, the first time I actually helped him set up for a party he was throwing for her and the second time I helped him redecorate.
"I painted her bedroom and both of her children's bedrooms as he told me it was his bosses house and we could stay there if we painted."
Liz was so furious she reported his actions to the police and he pleaded guilty to one count of bigamy at North Somerset Courthouse in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, on Thursday.
Chair of the bench, Peter Searle, sentenced Adrian to 17 weeks in prison and ordered him to pay £1,000 compensation, and put into place a restraining order.
He told Linham, who has two children from a previous relationship: "The length of deception is nothing short of incredible. You have shown no remorse and have humiliated your wife."
But Liz says experience has left her emotionally scarred and believes the custodial sentence will not change his ways.
"When something like this happens you feel like you are unlovable," she said.
"If your own husband doesn't even love you and can't love you how can anyone else possibly even like you?
"You must be an awful person if you can't even be loved by your husband. You can't help but think it must have been something you said or did. I don't think I can ever love again.
"I wouldn't be surprised if there are more women. I don't think he'd stop at two after everything I've heard. He'll never change."
