A day after Nigella Lawson admitted in court that she had used cocaine and marijuana in the past, the celebrity chef said Thursday she was embarrassed but felt she needed to come clean about her drug use, according to People Magazine.
Lawson admitted she used cocaine on several occasions, but said she was not "habitually using" illegal drugs.
"I would rather be honest, if ashamed, and explain the drug usage, but I wanted to make sure that I wasn't going to be bullied [with] lies," she said. "I am not proud of the fact that I have taken drugs, but that does not make me a drug addict or a habitual drug user.
"I concluded that I did not have a drug problem, I had a life problem, and I needed to attend to that and I did seek out a therapist," she said.
The 53-year-old also admitted to using cocaine six times, while her first husband, John Diamond, was battling cancer and went into detail in one episode.
"One time was when my husband knew his cancer was terminal, and he was introduced to it by a friend who thought it would help," Lawson told jurors. "I did on maybe six occasions and joined in with him. it was a small amount. It gave him an escape, but I didn't want an escape because I had to look after him and the children."
Lawson also accused her ex-husband, Charles Saatchi, a wealthy art dealer and advertising mogul, of spreading lies to destroy her reputation. In her testimony Lawson described life behind closed doors with ex-husband.
"I was having a very, very difficult time, I was being subjugated to intimate terrorism by Mr. Charles Saatchi," she said.
Lawson said she visited with her doctor following this incident.
Lawson said she smoked cannabis recently and in front of her two children but only used drugs once in her 10-year marriage to Saatchi. The TV personality said on Wednesday her ex-husband threatened to "destroy" her, if she did not clear his name. The 70-year-old was photographed choking Lawson outside of a London restaurant.
Lawson said she was reluctant to take the stand because she had been the focus of "bullying and abuse" from her husband. The couple divorced in July.
"I have been put on trial here where I am called to answer, and glad to answer the allegations, and the world's press, and it comes after a long summer of bullying and abuse," Lawson said. "He said to me at the start that if I didn't go back to him and clear his name he would destroy me."
The defendants, Italian sisters Francesca and Elisabetta Grillo, claim Lawson regularly used drugs, such as cocaine, marijuana and prescription drugs. They said Lawson let them use her family's money freely in exchange for their silence.
