On January 14 actor John Alford was sentenced at St Albans Crown Court for sexually abusing two children – The Mirror’s Patrick Hill attended the hearing and watched on as he attempted to put on a brave face for five family members in the public gallery
Fifty nine days ago, John Alford, once one of Britain’s most famous actors, was sentenced to eight and a half years in jail for sexually abusing two children.
I watched on as he attempted to put on a brave face for five family members in the public gallery by looking at them and tapping his heart while being led down to the cells. But at that moment it was clear he was fooling no one. He was a broken man.
Alford, whose real name was John Shannon, looked completely shell-shocked and I remember doubting he would ever recover. Now, two months to the day, we know for sure he never will, following the announcement that he died in his cell bed at at HMP Bure in Norfolk on Friday before guards found him unresponsive.
READ MORE: Harrowing impact John Alford’s crimes had on his victims before dying in prisonREAD MORE: Grange Hill John Alford’s crimes in full as he dies in prison weeks after sentencing
The court heard Alford had sex with the younger girl in the garden and in a toilet when he asked her chillingly: “Do you want this babe?” She answered “No”. He later assaulted her friend while she was “dozing off” on the sofa. Jurors were told he did not know the girls but was “in no doubt” they were underage.
The younger victim described how she no longer trusted men and how her relationship with her own father had been affected by what Alford, then aged in his 50s, had done to her. The other victim, aged just 15 at the time, told how she severely self-harmed for years after the attack and attempted suicide with a batch of sleeping tablets when she was only 16.
Both girls told the court they continue to suffer flashbacks and nightmares related to Alford’s crimes, which were committed against them almost four years earlier, in April 2022. They also both admitted they feared encountering him again one day following his release.
Today marks a sad end for Alford’s family, including his four children, who the court heard are aged between five and 19. But his victims and their families will not mourn him. I hope his death will at least give them some closure and peace of mind. They deserve it.
