Paedophile ex-actor who starred in Grange Hill jailed for having sex with girl, 14, in garden and toilet
A paedophile former actor who starred in the children’s hit show Grange Hill in the 1980s has been jailed after having sex in a toilet and garden with a 14-year-old girl - before molesting another girl.
Former London's Burning and Grange Hill star John Alford, whose real name is John Shannon, was today jailed for eight and a half years for the sex attacks on two girls, aged 14 and 15, at a friend's house in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, in April 2022.
The 54-year-old, of Holloway, north London, was found guilty after a trial in September at St Albans Crown Court. He was found guilty of four counts of sexual activity with the 14-year-old girl, and of sexual assault and assault by penetration relating to the 15-year-old teenager.
The sex predator gave the girls alcohol and knew they were under 16, the court was previously told. Alford had sex with the 14-year-old girl in the garden of the house and in a toilet, the victim said.
The former actor sexually touched the older girl as she was half asleep on a living room sofa.
Both girls were at the house when he arrived after drinking with the homeowner at a nearby pub.
Alford played Billy Ray in the ITV drama London's Burning and Robbie Wright in BBC series Grange Hill. He also had three top 30 hits on the UK singles chart in 1996.