Archive March 10, 2025

A man accused of stalking actress Anna Friel has pleaded not guilty at court.

Phil Appleton, 71, is alleged to have sent “numerous messages”, visited the actress’s home address on several occasions and “left unwanted gifts” between January 1 2022 and December 11 2024, a judge sitting at Reading Crown Court heard on Monday. The alleged stalking is said to have caused Ms Friel “serious alarm or distress” and had “an adverse effect on her day-to-day activities”, the court heard.

Appleton, of Springfield Road in Windsor pleaded not guilty to one count of stalking causing serious alarm or distress. The defendant, who appeared by videolink from HMP Bullingdon and did not have a solicitor present in court, told judge Neil Millard he accepted sending messages to Ms Friel and visiting her home address on several occasions, but denied his behaviour amounted to stalking.

A provisional trial date has been set for July 28 at Reading Crown Court. The defendant will next appear in court on May 9 for a further case management hearing.

Anna is best known for playing Detective Sergeant Marcella Backland in the hit ITV drama Marcella which aired from 2016 until 2019. While older TV fans may affectionately recall the actress playing Beth Jordache in the iconic Channel 4 soap Brookside between 1993 and 1995 – a role for which she won a National Television Awards in 1995.

As well as appearing in UK TV, Friel has enjoyed success in the USA – starring as Charlotte ‘ Chuck ‘ Charles in the ABC comedy series Pushing Daisies from 2007 until 2009. She also had a lead role in the second season of the anthology series The Girlfriend Experience – which was created by Oscar winning Hollywood director Steven Soderbergh.

Her role in Marcella – which broadcast internationally via Netflix – landed her an Emmy Award win as Best Performance by an Actress in 2017. And she has also appeared in films including Limitless, alongside Bradley Cooper, and London Boulevard alongside Colin Farrell and Keira Knightley.

Friel was previously in a relationship with Harry Potter star David Thewlis from 2001 until 2010 with whom she shares a daughter. She then dated the actor Rhys Ifans – who also appeared in the Harry Potter film franchise – from 2011 until 2014.

Follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads.

Jamie Laing has revealed he was the subject of a robbery – days after he revealed burglars tried to smash into his house.

The 36-year-old reality star has had a bad run of luck alongside his 30-year-old wife Sophie Habboo – who he tied-the-knot with in 2023. The couple live in West London and were horrified to be woken up early one morning to see a balaclava clad criminal trying to break into their home.

And now Jamie has revealed his car got broken into – with criminals leaving creepy items behind that he fears could have been left as some kind of message. Jamie and Sophie had previously opened up about their home invasion ordeal while discussing their lives on a podcast.

On Monday, the former Made In Chelsea star explained that he had been the victim of a second breaking and entering incident – this time involving his car. He detailed the moment he realised his car had been broken into and went on to explain his concerns over what he found inside the car.

Telling all on his Radio 1 show on Monday, Jamie said: “So, I live in London, I was with my wife Sophie and we went to get in our car. It’s parked around the place we live, and it’s London right, things maybe go missing occasionally or whatever. I walked up to the car, and the car looked a little bit funny, the door was slightly open, and I was like, ‘ Hang on a second, has someone managed to get into the car? ‘

” Came up to the car and we had been robbed. They left the pineapple in one seat and the melon in another seat. I said to my wife, ‘ Did you leave these in the car? ‘ and she was like, ‘ No? ‘, so I don’t know if it’s a sign or the mark they leave. “

The latest tale comes days after Jamie and Sophie opened up about an attempted home invasion. Speaking on their Newlyweds podcast, Jamie said that he heard a” banging noise “at 5.45am one morning. He recalled:” I’m butt naked, alright, I get out of bed […] It feels like there’s a delivery happening and that’s a bit weird. I go downstairs and I look out the front of our apartment. Just look onto the road. There’s no delivery person. It’s completely dark outside. There’s nothing going on. “

He added:” So I go back into our sitting room area and I look out the window. And I always sleep with the window open, like downstairs I keep the window open. Anyway, I lift the window wide open and I look outside. “Jamie shared moments later:” There is someone trying to break into the flat below, with a balaclava on. “

Jamie said he’s” never freaked out more “in his life, adding:” So I phoned the police. “He added:” Completely freaking out to the point where I went down to our front door]and] I lay down at the front door, stretched my whole body out to use myself as a door wedge. “Jamie said he then went to warn Sophie and that they now have increased security at the property.

Sophie shared on an episode of her Wednesdays podcast, released last week, but understood to have been filmed prior:” I’ve had a bit of a traumatic morning. We actually got attempted to be burgled this morning. […] Someone tried to break into our apartment at 6am this morning. I was fast asleep. I woke up to Jamie, very calmly I may add, going ‘ Sophie, we’re getting burgled. You need to get up, put your shoes on, we need to leave’. “

She said:” And I was just like ‘ what? ‘ and so I just stayed. He then rushed back downstairs – he didn’t stay with me. So I just stayed in bed because I thought ‘ oh, he said the police are coming’. […] 10 policemen came. It was unbelievable. Maybe there were two vans of policemen. Like, serious, they were so amazing. “

Follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads.

Wendy Williams has been seen being escorted to hospital amid a worrying debate over her health and guardianship.

The star was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and primary progressive aphasia (PPA) in May 2023, and has since been placed in an assisted living facility with her affairs under the control of a court-appointed guardian. Wendy, 60, has raged against claims that she’s “cognitively impaired”, begging for help to get her life back to normal.

In photos taken in New York on Monday, Wendy was seen being led to an ambulance as she left her assisted care facility, flanked by a group of sheriffs – one of whom she linked arms with.

According to the Daily Mail, the former talkshow host was en route to Lenox Hill Hospital, where she’s set to undergo a cognitive evaluation to establish whether she’s well enough for her guardianship to come to an end. The outlet reported that the visit came after she dropped a note reading “Help! Wendy!”! to paparazzi gathered outside her fifth floor window.

Wendy wore black trousers and a white top for the quick exit, layered with a long patterned cardigan. She clutched a handbag for the hospital trip, and let go of the cop’s arm to enter the ambulance herself upon arrival at the van’s front door.

Alongside her diagnosis with frontotemporal dementia, Wendy has shared that she’s struggled with other health issues over the past few years. Back in 2018, the star announced that she had been diagnosed with the autoimmune condition Graves ‘ disease, and its associated disease of hyperthyroidism.

Wendy’s movements are under the judgement of her court-appointed guardian Sabrina Morrissey, who previously declared in legal proceedings that Wendy is “cognitively impaired, permanently disabled, and legally incapacitated” – thus her move into the secure living facility in New York.

Wendy’s family has agreed with Wendy’s own opinion that the ruling is unwarranted, and previously shared their concern over their inability to contact the talk show host. Her relatives claimed that Wendy was put under guardianship without their knowledge and were not considered to be potential caregivers for her.

Last month, Wendy appeared on podcast The Breakfast Club via video link, and protested against her guardian’s claim that she was unable to live independently.

“I am not cognitively impaired, you know what I’m saying? But I feel like I’m in prison”, she said of her lodgings. “I’m in this place where the people are in their 90s and their 80s and their 70s … There’s something wrong with these people here on this floor”.

Wendy’s hospital evaluation follows news that she was given the green light by the court to visit her father in Miami for his forthcoming 94th birthday. The TV star will be able to leave her secure facility and fly to New York City before heading to Florida to join in the family celebrations, according to TMZ – with no specified date provided.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .