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 East London. Appleton cites himself as the President of the Guild of International Millennium Town Criers on his website. 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.