Fiona Middleton is a fictional character from the British television soap opera Coronation Street, played by Angela Griffin.
Griffin found the lack of information about Fiona's background to be a benefit, as it allowed her time to establish her character's personality.
Fiona became best friends with Maxine Heavey (Tracy Shaw) during her time on the Street, and had a long on-off relationship with Steve McDonald (Simon Gregson).
After breaking up with Steve, Fiona has a relationship with mechanic Tony Horrocks (Lee Warburton), which is complicated by Maxine's feelings for him.
After six years of playing Fiona, Griffin chose to leave Coronation Street to pursue further acting roles, as she did not want to wait around for her next big storyline.
Following a guest appearance in fellow British soap Emmerdale, sixteen year old actress Angela Griffin successfully auditioned for the role of hairdresser Fiona.
[5] Of her early days in the show, Griffin stated "I feel as if I've been lucky, I've been gradually introduced into the programme and have had a chance to get used to everything, whereas some actors come into Coronation Street and get thrown in at the deep end straight away.
"[6] Griffin was initially sceptical that the part would lead to much, but the audience reacted well to the character and her role within the show was increased.
Her brother also joked that she was originally a glorified on-set extra, which Griffin believed helped her remain grounded in her early years.
"[9] In The Official Coronation Street Annual, Rob Sharp describes Fiona as a "cute crimper" who "certainly turned a few heads" when she starts working at Denise Osbourne's hair salon.
A writer from Inside Soap profiled her stating "stylish hairdresser Fiona avoids the sex kitten look of her best friend Maxine, favouring autumnal shades and natural fibers, which she mixes and matches with aplomb.
"[13] In the wake of Steve's marriage, Fiona is offered a modelling job that was originally meant for Raquel Wolstenhulme (Sarah Lancashire).
[14] Griffin told Richard Arnold from Inside Soap that Fiona is "quite flattered" with the attentions she receives while modelling.
"[15] When Denise decides to sell the hair salon, Fiona's brother Lee Middleton (Nicholas Bailey) agrees to loan her the money to buy the business.
"[7] After Steve McDonald (Simon Gregson) breaks up with his girlfriend Vicky Arden (Chloe Newsome), he decides to pursue Fiona.
Griffin told Inside Soap's Arnold that in comparison to Steve, Tony is "quite shy and doesn't talk about himself the whole time.
Griffin also thought that Fiona needed to decide what she wanted before causing Tony any hurt because he "feels threatened by Steve as it is.
Griffin told Inside Soap's Helen Childs that Alan is independent which Fiona finds "very appealing" because "she loves being looked after.
"[23] Alan thinks Fiona is "the better person" and he creates a tough persona to hide his vulnerabilities and he "fears greatly" he may lose her.
[27] He added that "a lot has happened between Steve and Fiona over the last few monthd, but there's absolutely no reason why they can't become good friends again.
[30] Producers did not want to kill her character off, as Fiona was popular with viewers, giving Griffin the chance to return to the serial in the future.
[30] She later told Rebecca Fletcher of the Daily Mirror that while there was a lot more her character could do, she knew there would be around a year long wait between her last storyline and the next big one.
Fiona then receives an offer for the salon from Fred Elliott (John Savident) and she decides to sell up and leave Weatherfield.
[34] A few months later, viewers speculated that newcomer Emma Brooker, played by Alexandra Mardell, could be Fiona and Steve's secret daughter.
[38] After learning that Steve is her biological father, Emma contacts Fiona via Skype, as she is living in Australia, to talk about their family.
"[42] An All About Soap writer called Fiona "one of the show's best-loved characters", and said Griffin played her "with a confidence, fire and attitude that made her a hit with the public.
[13] Another writer for the magazine observed that Fiona "knows how to treat her men to keep them keen, and there's no doubt local whiz kid Steve McDonald was happy to play kiss chase for as long as it took to reel in feisty Fee!
[21] Not impressed by Steve's treatment of Fiona, Arnold joked that "it's a wonder the street's top hairdresser didn't take her scissors to him.
He wrote, "Perplexity has also struck the usually razor-sharp hairdresser Fiona Middleton - who can't decide whether to take up Alec Gilroy's offer of more showbiz bookings.
"[46] In a similar feature in 2019, Charlie Milward of Digital Spy included Fiona on his list of seven characters new producer Iain MacLeod should bring back.