Angie Appleton is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, played by Victoria Ekanoye. She made her first appearance on 21 August 2017 and then returned that October. Ekanoye was happy to be cast in the soap as she and her mother were fans of Coronation Street. Angie was introduced as the wife of Jude Appleton (Paddy Wallace) and the mother of his son, George Appleton (Romeo Cheetham-Karcz). The family arrive to Weatherfield for the wedding of Jude's mother, Mary Taylor (Patti Clare), which is revealed to be a charade to win a competition. The family later move to Weatherfield from their home in South Africa, which Angie is unhappy about.
Angie's initial storylines saw her feuding with Mary, and she later suspects that Mary is hurting George after he continuously falls ill whilst under her care. Ekanoye enjoyed working with Clare during the storyline. Angie was used to raise awareness of postnatal depression when Angie admits that she is struggling to bond with George. Mary and Angie begin to get along better and Angie also develops a friendship with Toyah Battersby (Georgia Taylor), but more heartbreak follows for Angie when she finds out that Jude has lied to her for years about his job. The betrayal leads Angie to almost kiss her colleague Adam Barlow (Sam Robertson), who Ekanoye thought would be good for Angie. Despite trying to make it work, Jude and Angie's marriage breaks down and Angie exposes Jude when he lies numerous other times. In December 2018, it was announced that Ekanoye would be departing as Angie, and Angie and George's last episode aired on 7 January 2019, where they leave to return to South Africa.
Angie appeared in 94 episodes of the soap. The character initially had mixed reactions from fans regarding Angie's feud with Mary, with some fans believing that Angie was behaving badly and others sympathising with her. Ekanoye was worried that fans would hate Angie and was surprised by the amount of fans that sympathised with the character. Angie's postnatal depression storyline was praised for raising awareness of the condition. Fans speculated that Angie would begin a relationship with Adam following their near-kiss, with some fans shipping the pair. However, Angie's departure was criticised by fans and critics as they felt that Angie had been underused as a character and had more potential. Her departure was considered emotional but also disappointing. Critics often discussed the hard times that Angie endured during her time in the soap, with some believing that she deserved a better partner than Jude.
Casting and characterisation
Victoria Ekanoye made her first appearance as Angie Appleton in the episode that originally aired on 21 August 2017, with her casting being announced prior to the episode airing. Angie was introduced as part of the soap's "brand new family", which included Angie's husband, Jude Appleton (Paddy Wallace), and their baby son, George Appleton (Romeo Cheetham-Karcz). Wallace had previously appeared as Jude in December 2016 as the long-lost son of Mary Taylor (Patti Clare). Ekanoye started filming as Angie at the same time that she was filming The Royals in the role of Rachel, and she found herself working "a lot harder and faster" in the soap due to the quicker turnaround, with Ekanoye commenting that she had a "huge" script pile. Due to filming both projects at the same time at the beginning of her tenure at Coronation Street, the actress had to get into a different headspace due to the different accents, with Angie being from North West England and Rachel having Received Pronunciation. Ekanoye noted that the characters of Angie and Rachel were completely different.
Speaking about joining the soap, Ekanoye, who grew up watching Coronation Street, called it a "surreal scenario to see it suddenly becoming my reality", adding that it is "mind boggling, but you just have to get your professional head on and do your job." Ekanoye was a fan of the soap from a young age and as a child used to put on "musicals" of the soap for her mum, with her favourite character being "iconic" Bet Lynch (Julie Goodyear). She praised the cast for being friendly and "so on point with their work", and was grateful to Clare for taking her "under her wing" and being so "sweet". She called working with the baby portrayer of George "amazing", commenting that he made her feel "broody" at times, and noted that it was unusual that there was only one baby playing him. She revealed that he would often cry due to teething and that his mother was always on set.
Speaking about the character, Ekanoye noted that Angie was a "strong minded" businesswoman before giving birth to her son, and that she is "itching" to get back to work in finance law. The actress enjoyed wearing Angie's work clothes, including her mini dresses, calling them "very nice" and "quite fitted", but added that they would "leave no room for having a large lunch", with the actress joking that she would use the baby to hide her "food belly". Ekanoye believed that Angie would be good friends with returning character Carla Connor (Alison King) due to their similar personalities, but the actress also liked Angie's friendship with Toyah Battersby (Georgia Taylor) and hoped that it would continue. The actress has also admitted that Angie is struggling with motherhood. Ekanoye was happy about the introduction of Angie and the family, saying ""Having a family involved has brought a whole new side to Mary which you didn't necessarily have before. I love the fact we've been able to explore Mary's character as well as having us to come into it and our own little Romeo."
Development Introduction Explaining the character's backstory, Ekanoye revealed that Angie and Jude met at university and then moved to South Africa for a new life. The couple and George arrive in Weatherfield in "eager anticipation" for Mary's wedding to Norris Cole (Malcolm Hebden), unaware that is a "charade". Mary can "barely contain her excitement" when the family arrives, but Angie quickly begins to "spot signs" that something does not seem "quite right" between Mary and Norris. Ekanoye explained that whilst Jude is happy for his mother, Angie "picks up on all the micro expressions" between her and Norris, adding that she "keeps noticing their body language and quickly becomes convinced that all is not as it seems". The actress expressed her delight in joining their unit, saying, "Patti and Malcolm are such a great duo and we laugh all the time on set, even when we shouldn't be. Connecting new characters with people who are already established really works. And Mary and Norris are such fan favourites. I feel very lucky that the two of them in particular are my foundation blocks. I love it. There's nothing about it that I don't like!" After the wedding, Mary confesses to her that Jude was conceived after she was raped as a teenager, which leaves Angie "devastated" for Mary. Ekanoye explained that whilst Angie "really feels for her on a woman-to-woman level", she knows that Jude needs to be told, even though it will "break his heart". The actress added that Angie is "juggling a lot of emotions" and explained that things would not be "plain sailing", saying "It's a big thing for Mary to have kept to herself and Jude will also feel betrayed. Angie will have to be there for both of them". After the wedding, Jude, Angie and George return that October and move in with Mary and Norris. Ekanoye explained that whilst Jude is happy about moving to Weatherfield, for Angie it is not what she "expected or wanted to happen". The actress also noted that Angie and Mary would clash due to Mary pushing for Jude to "settle close by" in order to have her family around, but speculated that Mary and Angie could later become a "formidable force", explaining that there may be "happier times" ahead if "they can just get past their differences".
Feud with Mary and postpartum depression
Ekanoye explained that Mary and Jude's reunion has changed Angie's life and she has had to abandon her "high-flying life" in South Africa. Angie begins to feel suffocated by Mary, with Ekanoye explaining that "Angie wants George to have his grandma, but this is also her first baby. She's missing out on all these important moments because Mary is constantly interrupting or taking over." The actress added that this is causing a rift between her and Jude, with Angie believing that his priority should be his wife and child, especially as he has only met Mary recently. When Angie admits to Toyah that she finds Mary very "overbearing" and that she feels like she does not get any quality time with Jude or George anymore, and after admitting this to Jude, the couple decide to move back to South Africa. Mary angers Angie when she tries to make them miss their flight, but Angie and Jude are then forced to rush George to hospital after realising he is ill, with the pair being "worried sick". At the hospital, Angie is left "stunned" when she is told that she may have postnatal depression after she admits to a member of staff that she has been struggling with her son.
Angie is reluctant to accept that she may have postnatal depression, and Mary ends up thinking that Angie has a drinking problem when Angie takes home a leaflet about it by mistake. Ekanoye noted that Angie's feud with Mary had mixed reactions; whilst some fans were "supportive" of Angie due to Mary being "overwhelming" with her behaviour over the baby, others fans believed that Angie was being a "right cow", which is how producers wanted Ekanoye to portray the character. The actress was happy about the reaction as she thought that she had done a good job, believing that people commenting proved she had made an "impact". Ekanoye spoke to her mother who loves the soap, with Mary being her favourite character. She told her daughter that whilst she understood Mary's view, she could see that Angie is struggling with the postnatal depression and thought that Mary and Angie would be friends "eventually". Ekanoye was worried that many fans would hate Angie due to Mary being such a popular character, but many enjoyed seeing the new "dimensions" being added to the storyline and the actress was surprised with how many fans sympathised with her. Ekanoye joked that she would "never" want a mother-in-law like Mary, but noted that she enjoyed working with Clare, calling her "sweet", "funny" and a "good egg" with great "energy".
Mary then suspects that "poor Angie" has a drinking problem after finding a leaflet about heavy drinking in Angie's bag, not knowing that Angie actually went to see a doctor about fearing that she is struggling to bond with George. Clare explained that Mary "puts two and two together and comes up with seven" and thinks that this is the explanation for "Angie's strange behaviour", as Mary has been "constantly" trying to find out why Angie sometimes acts so "distant and distracted". Wanting to help Angie, Mary throws a dinner party with Angie, Jude, Toyah and Toyah's partner Peter Barlow (Chris Gascoyne), and she "encourages Peter to share some of his horror stories of alcoholism", which makes the other guests bemused. Clare explained that this is Mary having the "best of intentions" and hoping that this will make Angie aware that she has a problem by having someone openly talk about their experiences with drinking, but it all becomes a bit "heavy-handed" due to Mary's "missing of the bark". Later, when Angie is able to confide in Toyah about why she is not feeling herself, Toyah suggests that she may have postnatal depression, which gives her food for thought.