Bridgerton star Genevieve Chenneour broke down in tears as she revealed she was attacked in central London.
The actress, 27, who played Clara Livingston in the hit Netflix series, posted an emotional video on her Instagram Stories on Thursday afternoon.
Genevieve said she was left ‘shaken’ after a man targeted her and hit her without warning near Oxford Circus – just minutes before she was due to walk into an audition.
It is the second time this year that Genevieve has been the victim of an attack, as earlier this year she fought off a violent phone thief in a west London cafe, an ordeal that left her concussed and severely agoraphobic.
Speaking through tears in the video filmed in a quiet room above the audition space, Genevieve said it had triggered fresh panic attacks and left her struggling to compose herself ahead of the casting.
She said: ‘Guys, literally five minutes before my audition, I was walking around the corner at Oxford Circus and this guy just looks at me, and targets me, and f***ing hits me.
Bridgerton star Genevieve Chenneour broke down in tears on Instagram on Thursday as she revealed she was attacked in central London
Geneivieve said she was left ‘shaken’ after a man targeted her and hit her without warning near Oxford Circus – just minutes before she was due to walk into an audition
‘I’m like, against the wall, and I was right about to arrive for my audition. So I had to come in, and I’m trying to gather myself, but I’m so shaken.’
She continued: ‘Obviously I had that phone attack happen to me and it’s so nerve wracking for me being out in central London now.
‘I’d just got my confidence up and was looking at moving back.’
She described her assailant as ‘about 50 years old, 6ft 3in, Black, wearing a dark-coloured hat and black clothes’.
Genevieve added: ‘I couldn’t walk anywhere – he was just looking at me, and he just f***ing hit me. It was a full grown man. I’m so shaken. I’ve got to try and prepare for this audition.
‘They’ve really kindly given me this room above the audition room and said I can just take my time and gather myself.
‘So I’m just going to take, like, half an hour, I think. I keep on having panic attacks.’
The incident comes just months after Genevieve’s previous assault – a violent robbery in February that she spoke about publicly for the first time this summer, saying she had been left unable to leave her home without company.
She described her assailant as ‘about 50 years old, 6ft 3in, Black, wearing a dark-coloured hat and black clothes’
During that attack, the actress confronted an 18-year-old phone thief inside a Kensington cafe, sparking what she described as a ‘full-on fight between four people for about five minutes’.
She briefly blacked out after being struck, later discovering CCTV footage of herself defending her phone had gone viral without her consent.
The robber, Zacariah Boulares, was jailed for 22 months in July for common assault and multiple counts of theft.
But Genevieve said at the time that not knowing the identity of the second man involved – who allegedly threatened to stab her – continued to frighten her, adding: ‘I can’t understand why someone’s walking around who has threatened to stab me.’
She said the psychological aftermath had been profound, leaving her ‘severely agoraphobic’ and unable to rely on public transport.
She has moved out of London to live with her mother and often stays in hotels when she needs to return to the capital for work and events.
Posting the footage just hours after the ordeal back in February, Genevieve warned: ‘Ladies please be careful.’
Friends of the actress have previously said she has worked hard to rebuild her confidence after the February assault.
Although the actress fought off the thief because of her boxing experience, she did advise the public not to do the same
Genevieve is a qualified Amateur Boxing Association (ABA) boxer and has an extensive sporting background.
She fought off the thief because of her boxing experience, but she did advise the public not to do the same.
She told Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard on This Morning at the time: ‘I don’t know if I would advise anybody else to do it.
‘I think I have very quick reactions, thanks to having three brothers growing up and I’m an aviated carded boxer. I think it just was an instinct, I also do a lot of fight training for work and acting…
‘I thought that was a normal reaction and I read all the comments [online] and realised, actually, a lot of people would just let them take the phone.’
