Paul Usher (born 30 April 1961 in Reading) is an English actor.He was educated at Wirral Grammar School for Boys, Bebington, and is best known for playing Barry Grant in Brookside, from the first episode until the last (with a lengthy gap before the final episode in November 2003), and PC Des Taviner in The Bill from 2001 to 2004.He has also appeared in Liverpool 1 and London's Burning and starred in Six Bend Trap, an Ironopolis Film Company with Lisa Riley and local actors from the Teesside Area.