Flat blaze artist Caroline Dyott: ‘I’ve been so lucky’
Woman who set fire to her own home apologises to neighbours after three months in jail
Published: 18 February 2010
by CHARLOTTE CHAMBERS
AN artist who set fire to her own flat has told how she is trying to put her life back together after being released from prison.
Caroline Dyott spent three months on remand in Holloway prison after being charged with arson following the blaze at her top-floor studio flat in Auden Place, Primrose Hill, in October last year.
She told firefighters she was responsible for starting it shortly after they rescued her.
At Blackfriars Crown Court on Monday, Judge Peter Clarke QC – who had previously called her act “incredibly stupid” – sentenced Ms Dyott to a six-month prison term, suspended for two years.
But he made it clear he had faith that she would not re-offend and believed she was getting her life back on track, acknowledging she had been going through “a very difficult time” when she broke the law.
Ms Dyott, who has been rehoused in Camden Town, said she wanted to apologise to her neighbours and thank the firefighters who tackled the blaze before anybody was hurt.
Speaking for the first time since her release, Ms Dyott, who was a popular figure among her Primrose Hill neighbours, told the New Journal she will only move back to her old flat – which is currently being renovated by her housing association, Community Housing – if she has the blessing of all her neighbours.
“I know it could have been so much worse,” she said of the blaze that saw her dramatically rescued from the rooftop and her neighbours forced to flee to safety in their dressing gowns and pyjamas.
“I am so sorry and I feel so lucky.
“It was a bad time, a very black time, but I feel like I’ve been given a second chance.”
Although an explanation for her actions was not given in court, Ms Dyott has enrolled on an alcohol treatment programme, which she attends twice a week, and has renewed contact with her friends and family.
At every court appearance, she was supported by her mother, sisters, and neighbours.
Ms Dyott said she is now trying to rebuild her life and wants to start working again as an artist, which she trained for at Hornsey School of Art. She has also been writing to women she met while in prison, in an effort to raise their spirits.
Ms Dyott said: “I’ve been so lucky and I want to thank all my friends, all my neighbours, and the Fire Brigade, and just apologise. I don’t know which Fire Brigade rescued me but they were just amazing.”
She is currently trying to track down the firefighters who pulled her to safety in order to thank them personally.
Sentencing her, Judge Clarke QC said: “When action like this takes place, however desperate people feel, the wives and husbands of members of the fire service have every reason to be enormously resentful of the dangers their husbands and wives are put in. It’s not just a cry for help on your part, there’s a great deal of danger you place others in.
“I recognise you were going through a very difficult time at the time you committed this very serious offence. I am sure you will not commit an offence like this again – it’s a risk I am willing to take given the support you now receive.”
Penny Dyott, Ms Dyott’s sister, said: “I’m just glad to have my little sister back.”