Heathrow airport's security turned out to be too intimate for Timothy Spall's wife

Timothy Spall picked up a New York Film Critics Circle Best Actor award this week for his enchanting role in Mr Turner, in which he plays the 19th-century landscape painter, and is tipped for an Oscar nomination

Timothy Spall picked up a New York Film Critics Circle Best Actor award this week for his enchanting role in Mr Turner, in which he plays the 19th-century landscape painter, and is tipped for an Oscar nomination.


Like his wife, Timothy Spall has been unlucky when it comes to flying. He was about to attend Cannes in 1996 but collapsed. Pic/AFP 

So let's hope his wife, Shane, who accompanied him, has a more rewarding experience when she flies over for the Academy Awards in Los Angeles in February.

We are saying so because Mrs Spall has revealed her shock at being subjected to the 'most intimate' body search by Heathrow security en route to America.

"Fingers touching lady places that would be called sexual impropriety in the street," she complains.

Transatlantic passengers have faced more aggressive searches and lengthier delays at airports since the summer, which has led to increasing complaints about intrusive body checks.

She added, "When I last came through here, it was a cursory pat-down — they hardly touched you. This time, it seems they are being a lot more aggressive and really groping people."

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