‘It goes with the territory’: Actress Felicity Kendal on her ‘lonely’ stalkers

The Good Life star Felicity Kendal has claimed she was stalked on multiple occasions throughout her acting career, but said it’s all part of the job.

Speaking in a tell-all interview with The Guardian, the talented actress opened up about her experience with a “few stalkers” who she came in contact with in her at the height of her fame. 

While she admitted other actors may be concerned about stalkers, Kendal said it wasn’t unusual in the 1960s and ’70s and in most cases, they were completely harmless.

The 72-year-old said there was a couple of people who would show up to every show and follow her home, with some even staying outside of her house, but she just took in her stride.

“It wasn’t serious, though. One of them was quite a sweet guy. Perhaps he was just lonely,” Kendal told The Guardian. “Some people might be traumatised by that, but I think: ‘Well, don’t be an actress then’. It goes with the territory to an extent.”

Kendal continued by explaining although her stalkers were harmless, obviously there are lines that shouldn’t be crossed.

“Obviously there are limits beyond which it’s frightening and terrible,” she added. “You don’t want to be shot and you don’t want to be dragged into the bushes, but I think you instinctively know as a human being what the threshold is.”

The British actress has been in the spotlight since the 1960s, taking on numerous roles in television shows and movies. However, it was her role in The Good Life that really got people talking.

Kendal played the role of Barbara in the BBC sitcom alongside Richard Briers for all 30 episodes of the show from 1975 to 1978. The humorous series followed the story of the pair as they removed themselves from their previously busy lives and converted their suburban home into a farm, much to the disgust of their neighbours.

Once The Good Life came to an end, the mother-of-two went on to appear in a flurry of other television shows including Rosemary and Thyme and The Mistress.

Now in her 70s, Kendal is still as fit and healthy as ever, claiming her youthful looks are thanks to her busy exercise schedule. The actress said while she still enjoys acting, there are other more important things to focus on nowadays.

“I go to the gym four times a week, I do yoga and weights to stay strong and that helps me avoid getting angry and depressed,” she told the paper. 

“Family becomes more important the older I get and things like work become less important.”

Do you remember watching Felicity Kendal in The Good Life?