THE BODY of a much-loved actor was found so decomposed the cause of his death could not be established, a coroner ruled.

Grange Hill star Terry Anthony Sue-Patt was discovered fully clothed, lying on his stomach in his Walthamstow flat on July 2, this year, an inquest heard on Friday (October 9).

Police were called to Northcott Road in Walthamstow, by a concerned friend of Mr Sue-Patt, who had failed to get hold of him for many weeks.

Three officers forced entry into the home and found the actor turned artist dead in his bedroom.

Despite his state of decomposition, the officers were able to identify the man from the many newspaper cuttings, photographs and accolades framed on the walls around him.

In a family statement read by the coroner Mr Sue-Patt, aged 51, was described a talented but troubled man.

It said: “Like every artist and creative soul in history he drew from his demons and they sometimes got the better of him.

“Terry had his own crosses to bear and he became gripped by a depression he never fully recovered from.

“Terry’s successful and eventful life was tragically cut short. He was our cherished son, brother, uncle and friend and will be sadly missed.”

Mr Sue-Patt found early fame as ‘Benny’ on popular BBC drama Grange Hill, becoming one of very few young black actors at the time.

When the show opened in 1978, Sue-Patt was the first on screen.

However, his career began years before that when he he appeared, aged eight, in The Spirit of Dark and Lonely Water (1973), a public information film on the dangers of rivers.

He also appeared in promotional videos for Bob Marley’s Punky Reggae Party (1977) and Pink Floyd’s Another Brick in the Wall (1979).

Keen footballer Sue-Patt was 13 when he was spotted playing in a park by Colin Cant, Grange Hill’s first producer.

His adult roles included Yusef, one of the football hooligans in the award-winning television film The Firm (1989) and Aaron in the comedy-drama Big Deal (1984-86).

He also featured in the sitcom Desmond’s (1990) and as Luke Harris, a gay student nurse, in several episodes of the hospital drama Cardiac Arrest (1994-96).

Sue Patt was described as an intelligent child who was called an ‘A grade’ student before he was discovered as an actor.

His family said: “Little could he know how wide a public he would touch, but little would they know he was barely acting.

“He was that little boy who carried a football everywhere and played at any opportunity.

“In short, he was a kid just like every brother, son friend out there, and the entire nation loved him for it.”

Mr Sue-Patt’s family described a happy, active youngster who was always “getting into trouble”.

To them, Terry and his character Benny were ‘the same person’.

Mr Sue-Patt’s world was crushed when his brother Michael was killed in a car crash in 1989, in which he was a passenger.

He went on to paint under the pseudonym ‘TSP hoodie’ and displayed his work at The Mill in Walthamstow.

But, he battled with alcohol and died with a can of beer next to his mattress.

Coroner Miss Nadia Persaud said: “The post mortem was unable to confirm a cause of death due to the extent of post mortem changes.

“In this circumstance there is no option available to me other than to reach an open conclusion.”