Tony Appleton

Career as a crier Appleton later trained as a toastmaster and has opened events in Milan, Amsterdam, and Las Vegas. Appleton recalls being told by a young child at a fete opening that "he looked like a town crier", and having "never looked back" since then. In the early 2000s, Appleton became the official town crier of Romford in Essex. Appleton later had unofficial crier duties at the 2011 wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, the 2012 Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, and the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.

In May 2015, Appleton announced the birth of Princess Charlotte, Prince George's sister, from the same place as he had announced Prince George's birth. In an interview with Us Weekly, Appleton stated that in contrast to his earlier announcement, the royal entourage was expecting his attendance outside the hospital. Later in that year, Appleton announced from the gates of Buckingham Palace that Elizabeth II had surpassed her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria as the longest-reigning monarch of Britain. In November 2017, Appleton – again in an unofficial capacity – announced the engagement of Prince Harry and American actress Meghan Markle from the gates of Kensington Palace in London.

Appleton returned to public attention in April 2018, when he announced the birth of Prince Louis of Cambridge from the steps of St Mary's Hospital.

The Independent journalist Jon Stone compared Appleton's unofficial role to the presence of bishops in the House of Lords and the inability of Members of Parliaments to officially resign their seats in the House of Commons, whereas Huffington Post UK journalist Jess Brammar compared Appleton to the role of Black Rod and the corresponding spectacle relating to Black Rod's invitation to MPs to the annual Speech from the Throne.