Gripper Stebson

Norman "Gripper" Stebson was a student at Grange Hill from 1980 to 1983. Gripper is the older brother of Emma Stebson. Gripper's friends are Denny Rees and Georgie Smith.

Series 5 (1982)
Gripper began harassing an overweight student named Roland Browning who began to attend Grange Hill. Over the course of the year he extorted money out of Roland and made remarks about his weight. At one point Gripper offered Roland a way out and tested Roland to see if he could break free of Gripper's hold on him, which resulted in him letting go of Roland's hand and Roland hitting himself in the face. Gripper continued to harass Roland, and when he couldn't make a full payment humiliated him by writing on the blackboard in Roland's classroom that he is attending a "shrink". The harassment came to a temporary standstill when Roland was struck by a van and put in hospital, thus would be absent for the remainder of the term.

Series 6 (1983)
Despite Roland being hospitalised Gripper didn't ease up on him and chose to harass him, and on Roland's first day back at school Gripper ruined his uniform as a warning to keep paying him. Over the course of the term Gripper's harassment got out of control when he started using racial abuse against black students and took a dislike towards a new classmate who is a Sikh. Gripper formed his own gang to fight against the black students. Gripper started showing an even more sadistic side when he cornered two young black students in the changing rooms and soaked them in the shower, referring to them as "scum". Gripper was eventually given a suspension, but upon returning to the school continued to cause trouble. Having had enough, he was ganged upon but Mr Baxter put a stop to it before any more violence could escalate. Gripper was then escorted to the headmistress's office and subsequently expelled.

Series 7 (1984)
On Grange Hill's sponsored walk, Jimmy takes Gripper's bike. Gripper catches up with Jimmy and Jimmy gives Gripper the betting money as compensation. Gripper tells him to clean the bike, but he leaves when Mr Baxter and Miss Gordon arrive with Janet to collect Roland. (Note that this is likely the only time that Gripper's malicious behavior was not without some justification, since the loss of his bike might have resulted in the loss of his job).

Series 8 (1985)
Although Gripper never returned on-screen, it is revealed that he, Emma and Denny are responsible for the recent burglaries at the school. When Gonch is discovered to have taken a tape recorder he had borrowed from another student from the staff room without permission, he is temporarily accused of the burglaries, until he plays back a recording of the morning's events. The voices of Gripper, Emma and Denny are heard on the recording, exposing them, Gonch is let off, and the police are informed. It is likely that the trio were arrested and charged for their crimes, and that Emma, like her brother before her, was expelled off-screen.

Gripper later returned on-screen in a cameo role in the 1985 Christmas Special, during which he attended the school’s Christmas fair, and took great delight in bombarding Mr Baxter with wet sponges at one of the stands.