Rocker Ian Brown stunned jurors when he was unveiled as star witness in the Fred Talbot sex trial - and then claimed his former schoolteacher had shown 'gay porn' to 11-year-old pupils.

The 51-year-old star, famous as front man of the Stone Roses and for a

successful solo career, walked into Court 9 to testify against Mr Talbot, who is accused of historic sex offences against schoolboys.

Mr Brown is not a victim in the case, but was taught biology by Mr Talbot

at Altrincham Grammar School for Boys in the 1970s.

Dressed in a blue coat, Ian Brown has took the oath on the Bible. He told the jury teachers were 'violent' in the era, but Fred Talbot was an exception.

He told court that Mr Talbot that in one lesson encouraged his 11-year-old pupils to masturbate, told them how to do it, and asked them about it in a subsequent lesson.

Those that told him they had been 'successful' would be 'murmured' to in lessons by him while other pupils did their work.

Mr Brown described another a lesson from his first year at the school, saying: "The blinds were drawn and there was a projector.

"He showed me a film. It was years before I realised it had been wrong to show us that film.

"It was a three minute film on Super 8 projector and a young guy walks into a room dressed in denims, sits on the bed, takes his trousers down and masturbates.

"It was only a few years later I realised it was perhaps a gay porn film. It wasnt a sex education film."

Mr Talbot, 65, of Bowdon, Cheshire, denies ten indecent assaults on boys as young as 14, dating back to 1969.

Proceeding