Leslie Grantham 'a hero' in fire drama

Former EastEnders star Leslie Grantham has been praised for behaving "heroically" after helping dozens of people to escape from a burning building.

The 62-year-old actor provided assistance to residents at an apartment block in Swansea when flames began to sweep through the ground floor yesterday.

Grantham had been staying with a friend in one of the flats when he noticed that the blaze had broken out inside. He then fled from the burning room and ran from door to door, urging other residents to seek safety.

One told the Daily Mail: "Leslie was great, he banged on all the doors telling people to get out. By the time he escaped there was loads of smoke and we could hear the fire engines coming.

"I know he is famous for playing the bad guy but in this case he was a real hero."

Meanwhile, fireman Gary Williams commented: "Before we arrived there was still one person trapped inside. The gentleman managed to escape and was standing outside when we got to the scene.

"I can confirm that this gentleman was Mr Grantham. I would like to compliment him on his actions, in which he went around the other flats telling people about the fire. He acted heroically."

It is believed that Grantham, who is best known for his role as Walford's Den Watts, was later given first aid for a cut to his hand and smoke inhalation.

His agent told DS: "As far as we're aware, Leslie's fine but we don't know much about it."