John Alford dies behind bars two months into sentence for assaulting teen girls

Disgraced British actor John Alford has died in prison at the age of 54, just two months after beginning an eight-and-a-half-year sentence for sexually assaulting two teenage girls.

Alford, who gained fame as a child actor on Grange Hill and later starred in the firefighter drama London's Burning, was found dead at HMP Bure in Norfolk, England, on March 13, a Prison Service spokesperson confirmed. 

“As with all deaths in custody, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman will investigate,” the spokesperson added.

Alford, whose birth name was John Shannon, was convicted last year at St. Albans Crown Court for sexually assaulting two girls aged 14 and 15. 

Prosecutors said he supplied alcohol to the victims before committing the assaults in April 2022. 

Alford denied the charges, claiming the allegations were a “setup” and noting a lack of DNA evidence, but was ultimately found guilty on four counts of sexual activity with a child and additional sexual assault and assault by penetration charges.

He began serving his sentence on January 14. At sentencing, Recorder Caroline Overton noted the “significant and ongoing impact” of his crimes on the victims’ lives.

Alford had a troubled past, including a 1999 conviction for supplying cocaine and cannabis to an undercover journalist, which resulted in a nine-month prison sentence and his firing from London’s Burning. 

He began his acting career in the ITV sitcom Now and Then before landing his breakout role on Grange Hill. Other credits include The Bill, Casualty, and Provoked.

His death marks a tragic and controversial end to a career that once made him a household name in the U.K., overshadowed in later years by legal troubles and criminal convictions.