Actor Anna Friel has described being “constantly looking over her shoulder” after a man stalked her for three years, telling her she would make the “perfect wife” and turning up at her home with a ring. Phil Appleton, 71, a former pilot and actor, was made subject to a 15-year restraining order by a judge at Reading Magistrates Court on Thursday, preventing him from contacting Friel and banning him from specific areas she frequents.
Friel said in victim personal statements that Appleton had “invaded” her private life and that protecting herself and her family had taken up valuable time. “As a woman in the acting industry where there have been lots of cases relating to stalking, it has still shocked me when this has happened to me,” she said. “This case has made me feel very threatened and makes me feel like I am having to look over my shoulder all the time.”
The court heard that Appleton first approached Friel in 2022 while she was walking in Windsor, Berkshire, with her daughter. He claimed to have worked with her and obtained her email. He then sent regular emails, saying he loved her, missed her, and invited her to meals. In December 2022, he tried to join her health club and referred to her as “the perfect wife”. He sent an explicit email saying he was in bed naked thinking of her and included a selfie of his bare torso.
Friel reported Appleton to police, who issued a warning. However, a year later, in December 2023, he turned up at her home wearing a dinner jacket, saying he was taking her to a ball. Her daughter asked him to leave. In December 2024, he returned, looked at security cameras, mouthed “I love you” and held up a ring. He came back the next morning and again the following day, prompting Friel to scream and call police. He was arrested that evening.
Appleton, now of Essex, admitted stalking. His barrister said his client felt “sorry and ashamed”. The judge imposed a 24-month community order, including 10 rehabilitation activity requirement days, along with the restraining order. Friel, 49, best known for her role in Brookside, said the ordeal had created “turmoil, anxiety, the fear of the unknown” and expressed disappointment that the initial warning did not stop him.
