DISGRACED actor John Alford’s cause of death has been revealed after he was found dead in his prison cell just weeks after being caged for sexually assaulting two teenagers.
The disgraced actor died less than three months into the sentence at Category C HMP on March 13 this year – and now the cause of his death has been revealed.
John Alford – who played Robbie Wright in the BBC series Grange Hill – was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison after being convicted of sexually assaulting two teenage girls, 14 and 15.
The victims had been at a pub before heading to the home of a pal whose dad had been drinking with Alford, real name John Shannon.
The paedophile bought £250 worth of food, booze and cigarettes from a petrol station, including vodka the girls drank later, a trial at St Albans crown court was told. Once left alone with the girls, Alford had sex with the younger girl in a garden and a toilet.
The trial heard he asked her “Do you want this babe?” to which she answered “No”. He assaulted the other teen twice while she was “dozing off” on the sofa.
Following the horror, The older girl said Alford “destroyed my mental wellbeing”. The other said the assault “affected me and my family in every way”.
The disgraced TV star made his mark on BBC school drama Grange Hill in the 1980s and found fame as fireman Billy Ray in London’s Burning in the 1990s before his fall from grace.
Grange Hill ran for 30 years until 2008 and launched the careers of several famous faces we know today. It covered major issues from drug use to teen pregnancy, HIV and knife crime.
The show’s characters became some of the most recognisable faces on TV, but where are the actors who played its young stars now? From sex assault scandal to star who traded acting for a very ordinary job, fate has dealt the former stars varied hands.
John Alford – Robbie Wright
Towards the end of his Grange Hill stint, Alford later admitted he was drinking up to 18 bottles of beer and nine spirits shots a night.
But he went on to earn a new army of fans as fireman Ray in London’s Burning from 1993 to 1998. However, this didn’t last long either, as John was sacked two years later after he was convicted for supplying cocaine and cannabis. He served six weeks of a nine-month sentence in 1999.
But this wasn’t his only encounter with the law. Back in 2019 John pleaded guilty to smashing a windscreen in a bin lorry ‘hijacking’ and resisting arrest. A hearing at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court heard how a refuse worker spotted the shamed TV star who had broken into the Veolia lorry while it did its morning rounds near his home in Holloway, North London.
Police attended and noted that John was seemingly under the influence as he began resisting arrest. First, John argued with attending officers Police Constables Darren Baker and Miranda Narcin and claimed he was trying to stop the vehicle rolling back, but they all fell to the ground as he resisted their attempts to restrain him, Irish Mirror reported at the time.
The sick predator, who had been in a psychiatric hospital before his September 2025 trial, was found dead in his prison cell earlier in March. The provisional cause of death for Alford has now been publicly recorded as ischaemic heart disease following an inquest opening.
George Armstrong – Alan Humphries
He starred as Alan from the first episode of Grange Hill in 1978 until Series five in 1982.
Among Armstrong’s other roles was that of PC Driscoll in The Bill in 1989. He later gave up acting and became a theatre manager at a public school.
Unfortunately, the former TV star passed away in 2023 following a “long battle with leukaemia“. His former co-stars paid tribute to the actor, describing him as a “true legend”.
Lee Whitlock – Bevis Loveday
Alan’s sad death came just months after the passing of Lee Whitlock, who played Bevis Loveday in series 16 in 1993, in February.
Prior to that, Lee launched his career in the popular TV series Shine On Harvey Moon as Stanley Moon in the 1980s.
London-born Lee, who died aged 54, went on to appear alongside some of the biggest names in the movie industry – Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter – in the 2007 film Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
Other film credits included Wish You Were Here, Jack the Giant Slayer, Cassandra’s Dream and Wild Bill. Lee also had cameos in Casualty, EastEnders, Lovejoy, Boon, The Bill, London’s Burning and Solider, Solider.
Paula-Ann Bland – Claire Scott
One of the show’s most iconic characters, Claire – played by Paula-Ann Bland – was a child of overprotective parents. Following the trailblazing drama series, Paula, now 54, continued her acting career and portrayed Kelly Brice in Only Fools and Horses, as well as Sylvie in Vanity Fair.
The mother-of-two, who posed topless for lads’ magazine Mayfair, also moved to Los Angeles for a time before returning to London to set up a publicity firm.
Despite finding enormous success, Paula’s life was thrown upside down after she found out she had stage three triple-negative breast cancer in 2018.
In an interview in the Sunday Express at the time, Paula revealed: “When you hear the word cancer, you can’t hear anything else, everything else becomes just white noise.”
The actress, who was considered the British Kylie Minogue thanks to her version of The Locomotion, lost part of her breast during her procedure.
She added: “I understand it had to be done to save my life and this is better than the worst scenario of a double mastectomy and removal of the ovaries. But the procedure still leaves you without an important part of your identity as a woman.”
Terry Sue-Patt – Benny Green
Benny Green, played by Terry Sue-Patt, made his screen debut when Grange Hill premiered in 1978. “There weren’t many black actors about on TV at that time. I had a great time, getting time off school to play football. It was a bit of a dream come ”true”, really,” he told the Daily Mirror.
After his tenure at the London school ended in 1982, Terry went on to star in Channel 4 comedy Desmond’s, set in a Peckham barbershop, and also the 1989 film The Firm. Tragically, Terry was found dead at his London home in 2015 at the age of 50.
The family of the actor released a statement revealing his struggle with personal challenges before his passing. Police feared his body may have lain there for a month before it was found.
John Holmes – Luke ‘Gonch’ Gardener
Luke ‘Gonch’ Gardener was portrayed by John Holmes, who starred in the show for four years from 1985 before wisely deciding to return to education.
He committed himself to his studies at the University Of East Anglia, where he served as president of the student union for several years.
As reported by The Express, John, who is now 56, left the acting world to manage a casino.
Susan Tully – Suzanne Ross
Susan Tully, known for her role as Michelle Fowler in EastEnders, began her acting career as Suzanne Ross in the BBC series.
The 58-year-old has since applied her talents behind the camera as a successful television director of shows including Secret Diary Of A Call Girl, Lark Rise To Candleford and Getting On.
Millions have watched her work as a director on episodes of Line Of Duty, as well as of EastEnders and the ITV thriller Too Close.
Lee MacDonald – Samuel ‘Zammo’ McGuire
The class clown was at the centre of one of the most talked about storylines on the series when his character developed a dangerous heroin addiction in the mid-80s.
Lee, now 55, tried his hand at professional boxing after leaving the show, but a car accident in the early 90s left him unable to return to the ring.
He had been running a locksmiths and key-cutting business since retiring from telly, but in 2019 he made a surprise comeback 32 years after playing Zammo by joining EastEnders.
In 2020, he got engaged to his long-term partner, Jess. Just three years later, in 2023, the former child star broke down in tears when he feared he had cancer. But although he was given the all-clear, Lee was then diagnosed with a pre-cancerous spot called keratosis after noticing another mark on his face last year.
After leaving Grange Hill, Lee used sunbeds to feel more confident, but regrets using them following his diagnosis.
He explained: “Without a shadow of a doubt, if I look back now, obviously, because of my complaints, I wish I’d never, ever gone near them if I knew now what I knew, then I would not have touched them. I would not not go near them.”
Michelle Herbert – Trisha Yates
Trisha Yates’ Michelle Herbert left the series in 1982, concluding five memorable series. Moving her life to Dundee in the 90s, the mother-of-two and her husband manage All Glass and Glazing business.
But like many other former Grange Hill alumni, she has had her share of obstacles. While she was in a hotel room, during a family holiday in Rome, Michelle spotted a small dimple on her breast in May, 2015.
She was subsequently diagnosed with breast cancer and had to undergo a mastectomy – but luckily, the 61-year-old has since received the all-clear.
Following the ordeal, Michelle has been adamant on raising public awareness around the lesser-known symptoms of breast cancer, urging women to check for dimples.
Erkan Mustafa – Roland ‘Roly’ Browning
Fans of the series all adored Roland, didn’t they?
Roland was the lovable character who, despite horrific bullying, eventually found the strength to confront his tormentors after enduring years of abuse.
Post-Grange Hill, Erkan Mustafa, 56, appeared in the holiday favourite Blackadder’s Christmas Carol and later captivated music fans as a host on E4 Music. he starred in Lenny Henry’s 90s sitcom Chef! and Blackadder and also made appearances on Soccer AM and Celebrity Juice.
Sean Maguire – Terence ‘Tegs’
Sean Maguire was only 11 when he joined the cast of one of the most famous schools on TV. He later starred as Aidan Brosnan in EastEnders and also had roles in The Bill, crime series Scott and Bailey, and Holby City.
In the 90s, Sean moved away from acting to kick-start his pop career with two albums and an impressive eight singles that broke into the Top 30. His venture into film, however, wasn’t as successful, with his movie, Meet the Spartans, winning a meagre 2.8-star rating on IMBd.
Undeterred by this hiccup, Sean rebounded when he secured the role of Robin Hood in the American TV series Once Upon a Time. Sean, now 50, married police officer Tanya Flynn in 2012 and they have two sons, as well as a daughter. They now live in the US where the former child star has become a citizen.
Simone Hyams – Caroline ‘Calley’ Donnington
Simone appeared in the first episode of Grange Hill and played the role of Calley in Grange Hill.
In 1991, Simone, now 54, landed a role in the film Dirty Weekend, but it wasn’t released until two years later because it was deemed too violent.
She then went on to star in The Bill before shifting careers to become a corporate events manager for Virgin.
Todd Carty – Peter ‘Tucker’ Jenkins
Todd was just 14 when he joined the BBC cast and went on to be one of the show’s most famous faces.
He was so popular as the lovable rogue Tucker that he got his own successful spin-off series, Tucker’s Luck, for three years. After Grange Hill, Todd played Mark Fowler in EastEnders until 2003 before joining The Bill as evil Gabriel.
Todd, now 62, also famously appeared on Dancing On Ice in 2009 where he became an internet sensation in 2009 after losing control and skating out of the studio.
Since then, he has featured in a range of TV shows, including the comedy A Touch of Cloth, Celebrity 5 Go Caravanning, and the short film The Drive.