Maggie Kirkpatrick: “My worst nightmare”

Veteran actress Maggie Kirkpatrick has again described the trauma of her wrongful conviction following abuse allegations in 2015.

“It was right and proper that I be exonerated. But it doesn’t remove the stigma, it doesn’t remove the scar which I will probably carry for the rest of my life,” she told A Current Affair.

In 2015 the former Prisoner star was found guilty of two counts of indecent assault and one charge of committing a gross act with a person under 16. The case dated back to the 1980s when she welcomed a teenage fan into her home.

But several months later a Judge overturned the finding, saying she should not have been convicted in and dismissed the conviction against her. It took until 2017 before her next television role.

“It was my worst nightmare,” she said of the trial, acknowledging it gave her post-traumatic stress disorder.

She also criticised images of Joan Ferguson used throughout media coverage of the case.

“No respect at all, but I guess that’s the way things are. Guilty until proven innocent.”

Kirkpatrick, now 78, said Prisoner comprised just 4 or 5 years of her 5 decade career.

“I didn’t really think very much of it at the time, but now I’m not allowed to forget it,” she said.

“I never thought when I was planning on being a great Shakespearean actress that I would be a cult figure. But there you go.”

Kirkpatrick, now based in northern NSW has penned a biography The Gloves Are Off.