Townshend hires guards

Shamed rock star Pete Townshend has hired round-the-clock security after receiving death threats and taunts about his Internet porn caution.

Friends say the 57-year-old is terrified of an attack and is constantly harassed in the street by people calling him 'Paedo Pete'.

Bodyguards now accompany the Who star everywhere and patrol the gates of his West London mansion through the night.

Townshend was cautioned and placed on the Sex Offenders Register for five years in May after he was caught paying to access a child porn website.

He claimed he did so because he was concerned at the shocking material readily available on the Internet.

'Pete is a changed man because of what has happened,' said a friend last night. 'He has become practically a recluse. He rarely goes out and has hardly seen his friends. He has received a lot of hate mail.'

Townshend said recently that he wanted to meet all the people who did not believe he was innocent of any wrong-doing.

'I'm going out on the street to give those people who are undecided a chance to look me in the eye and make their own decision,' he said.