Former Brookside actor jailed for £13.6m modelling fraud

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 16 Oct, 23:32 · Archive

Brookside actor Philip Foster has been jailed for operating a network of fake modelling agencies that defrauded thousands.

Philip Foster, who played Christian Wright in the Channel 4 soap Brookside during the 1990s, ran an extensive network of fake modelling agencies across London, Manchester, Leeds, Bristol, Coventry and Nottingham. More than 6,000 victims were persuaded to pay large sums of money on the false promise of securing paid modelling work, according to a six-year investigation by National Trading Standards. Foster operated the fraud from Spain, where he had lived for at least 15 years and maintained a lavish lifestyle with high-end watches and cars purchased with the proceeds.

Foster was initially sentenced in his absence at Sheffield Crown Court to eight-and-a-half years in jail in February 2025. He was extradited to the UK on 8 October and held at HMP Wormwood Scrubs. At a sentencing hearing on Friday at Sheffield Crown Court, he received an additional six months for attempting to evade justice, bringing his total sentence to nine years.

Foster's son Michael was also involved in the scam and smuggled cash to Spain. According to his barrister Anthony Barraclough, Foster remained on the run due to grief following the alleged murder of his son around Christmas 2025 and the death of his wife in May 2026. The Daily Mail reports that Spanish authorities have imposed 'a blanket of secrecy' regarding the son's death.

How it is being reported

• Former Brookside actor who hid in Spain before his trial for orchestrating £13.6million modelling scam from home is jailed for nine yearsEx-TV soap actor Philip Foster, 51, was jailed in his absence for eight and a half years in February 2025 for fraud and money laundering, but hid in Spain before his trial.Daily Mail · 16 Oct, 23:16
• Brookside star Philip Foster jailed over £13m fraud and claims son 'murdered' in SpainBrookside actor Philip Foster ran the operation from Spain, with sham modelling agencies in London, Manchester, Leeds, Bristol, Coventry and NottinghamThe Mirror · 16 Oct, 15:17

In this story: Philip Foster · Brookside · Spain · Sheffield Crown Court · London · Manchester · Leeds · Bristol

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