An e-bike rider struck Nicky Campbell’s daughter Lilla on June 19 and fled the moment an ambulance pulled up and bystanders gathered around. Lilla, who is twenty-six years old, had been out in the area with her sisters when the incident took place. Witnesses had reportedly clocked the cyclist riding erratically in the area beforehand.
As per a report shared by the Daily Mail, Lilla was rushed to King’s College Hospital following the collision, where she was seen for facial injuries and a range of other wounds. Lilla works in advertising. Her LinkedIn profile shows she is currently a Media Planner/Buyer at JAA Media, a company she first joined as a Media Assistant before working her way up to her present position.
As per her LinkedIn profile, Nicky Campbell’s daughter had built up experience at a handful of other places before JAA Media came along. She had done a stretch as a Gallery Assistant at Panter & Hall Gallery and later picked up a Digital Marketing internship at The Organic Pharmacy, and back in 2019, she also put in a month at the BBC as a Production Assistant.
Nicky Campbell opens up on social media:
Campbell took to Instagram to open up about what the family had been through.
“It’s been a long and emotional night,” he said.
Nicky Campbell also shared that he was hoping CCTV would help track down the rider, who had allegedly “scarpered” the moment paramedics arrived. Lilla is now back home recovering.
“It could have been so much worse. We are incredibly lucky,” Campbell added.
As per a report shared by the Daily Mail, Nicky Campbell described a further incident that had unfolded inside the A&E ward at King’s College Hospital. A man had entered the ward and exposed himself in front of Lilla and her sisters. He was later arrested. The broadcaster, who is married to former Virgin Radio journalist Tina Ritchie, praised the police in the same post.
“The police were magnificent,” he wrote.
“I spoke to them when I arrived at 3.15am and he is now in custody,” he added.
He also thanked the staff who helped through the night.
“We all want to say a massive thank you to our amazing police, the wonderful staff at King’s College Hospital – nurses and doctors. From the bottom of our hearts. They were all bloody superb.”
He wrapped up with a photograph of a ‘Thank You’ banner.
Source close to the Campbells describes the rider and what Lilla was left dealing with:
As per a report shared by the Daily Mail, a source close to the Campbell family shed light on what they believe was behind the rider’s decision to flee. The source described the offender as being on one of “those bulky, souped-up illegal bikes,” suggesting that may well explain why he did not stick around once the ambulance arrived.
“He was showing off on the road on the bike before the accident,” the source shared.
“Lilla’s friend saw the cyclist coming, swerving all over the road in a crazy way, at high speed,” added the source.
Beyond the facial injuries Lilla had already been treated for, the source revealed she was having difficulty moving one side of her body following the collision, though confirmed that no bones were broken. When The Mail on Sunday visited the site of the accident, dried blood was still visible on the road, close to the bars and restaurants in the surrounding area.
Ali Hamza, a food delivery rider who witnessed the incident, described the biker who struck Lilla as Afro-Caribbean.
“I was shocked to see what happened. I felt really bad,” Hamza said.
Nicky Campbell launched a brand new BBC podcast earlier this year:
Before his daughter’s incident made headlines, Nicky Campbell had already been in the news back in March 2026, when he returned to BBC 5 Live with a brand new podcast. Don’t Say a Word launched on 3 March on BBC Sounds, and as per a report shared by the BBC, the show set out to examine how social expectations, cultural norms and public reactions shift over time and why.
The first run of episodes pulls in guests like Adam Pearson, who joins to talk about disabled representation and makes the case for why he is the right person to take on the role of the Elephant Man. Other conversations dig into what separates a right laugh from a wrong one, casting controversies, whether lived experience should dictate who gets to play certain roles, and even whether the word “brainstorm” qualifies as offensive.
On the launch of the show, Nicky Campbell shared his thinking behind it.
“We’re living in a time where words carry more weight than ever and sometimes, more risk. This podcast is about asking the difficult questions, having honest conversations, and debating the absurdity of it all. There’s a lot to say about not being able to say things,” he said.
Edited by Ryan D’souza