- Born
- Died
- Birth nameJohn James Shannon
- Height5′ 5″ (1.65 m)
- The Glasgow-born actor was cast in Grange Hill after attending a London stage school from the age of nine where he studied alongside EastEnders' stars Patsy Palmer and Sid Owen. After appearing briefly in an ITV sitcom called Now and Then (1983), Alford landed the role in Grange Hill (1978) at the age of 11. But the young actor found fame too tough to handle and started drinking heavily. By the time he left the show at the age of 17 he had reportedly spent up to £80,000 on alcohol and gambling.
John, most famous for his role of young fireman Billy in the hit TV series, London's Burning (1988), became an overnight pop star with reggae version of the song "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" which went into the UK charts at number 13 in 1996. In December of that year, just before he was due to appear in pantomime in Sunderland, Alford collapsed and was taken to hospital in Newcastle suffering from a rare blood disorder.
In May 1999, he was jailed for nine months for supplying drugs to an undercover Journalist. After the drug charges and sentence John found TV work extremely difficult to find and became a roofer. The following year he appeared in Mike Bassett: England Manager (2001), playing the part of Deano.
- IMDb mini biography by: Anonymous
- In January 2006, he was banned from driving for 16 months after being arrested for drink-driving. Magistrates ordered him to pay a £150 fine and £100 costs.
- Convicted child sex offender.
- Sentenced to nine months imprisonment in May 1999 for supplying cannabis and cocaine to Mazher Mahmood, an undercover reporter working for Sunday tabloid 'The News of the World'. On release he worked as a roofer, scaffolder and cabbie.
- In September 2000, he lost his appeal against his conviction for supplying drugs to a bogus Arab prince. He claimed that he was the victim of an unfair trial.
- Sued the News Group Newspapers in relation to the phone hacking scandal, and them ruining his life and his acting career. He was eventually awarded £500,000 in damages but claimed most of it was swallowed up in legal fees and costs.
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