Benedict Cumberbatch's home terrorized by a man brandishing a fish knife
The home Benedict Cumberbatch shares with his wife Sophie Hunter was reportedly damaged by an intruder wielding a strange and unique weapon
In an invasion of privacy that certainly aligns with the Doctor Strange name, Benedict Cumberbatch’s home was reportedly damaged recently by a man who cursed Cumberbatch’s name while brandishing a fish knife. The A.V. Club has reached out to Cumberbatch’s representation for comment.
The Guardian identifies the disgruntled intruder as 34-year-old Jack Bissell, a chef who once presided over the five-star Beaumont Hotel restaurant in Mayfair, London. Per court documents obtained by The Guardian, Bissell “pulled a plant from the garden and threw it at the wall” before he “spat at the property’s intercom and attacked it using the fish knife.” At the time of the incident, Cumberbatch was reportedly in the residence with his wife, Sophie Hunter, and their three children; thankfully, no one was harmed. Cumberbatch has yet to publicly comment on the reported incident.
“I know you’ve moved here, I hope it burns down,” Bissell allegedly said at one point, after kicking open the home’s front garden gate.
Although he fled the scene, Bissell was identified by DNA he left on the intercom, The Daily Mail reports. During the trial, the prosecution also reportedly alleged that before the attack, Bissell had told a shopkeeper point blank that he planned to “break in[to] and burn down Cumberbatch’s house.”
After pleading guilty to a charge of criminal damage at Wood Green Crown Court in London on May 10, Bissell was fined £250 (just under $310 in U.S. currency) and given a three-year restraining order forbidding him from going near Cumberbatch, Cumberbatch’s family, and the area where they live. Per The Daily Mail, Bissell offered no defense for his actions (and no explanation for his unique choice of weapon).