Gary Glitter has appeared in court accused of plying a schoolgirl with alcohol so he could have sex with her.

The former pop star faces a string of charges relating to alleged sex offences against two under-age girls in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Making his first court appearance over the allegations today, the 70-year-old sat in the dock and listened through a hearing loop

Dressed in a beige three-piece suit, pink shirt, cream scarf and wearing tinted glasses, Glitter spoke only to confirm his name, age and address during a hearing lasting less than five minutes at Westminster Magistrates' Court.

Looking tanned and sporting a white goatee beard, Glitter, who appeared under his real name Paul Gadd, removed his Panama hat before the start of the proceedings.

He spoke slowly and in a clear voice to give his personal details, spelling out his surname.

Deputy chief magistrate Emma Arbuthnot asked defence barrister Christopher Ware why Glitter was wearing sunglasses.

He replied that his client had a "medical condition" and meant "no disrespect" to the court.

Glitter, from Marylebone in central London, is accused of eight charges, with six relating to one girl and two to another.

He is accused of four counts of indecent assault against the first alleged victim, who was aged 12 or 13 at the time, between January 1977 and December that year.

Glitter is accused of administering a drug - "namely alcohol" - with the intention to "stupefy or overpower" the girl to enable him to have sex with her between January and May 1977.

He also faces one charge of unlawful intercourse with a girl aged under 13 between the same dates.

The former singer is accused of another two counts of indecent assault against a second complainant, who was aged 13 or 14 at the time, between October 1979 and December 1980.

Judge Arbuthnot bailed Glitter until a hearing at Southwark Crown Court on July 3.

He was surrounded by photographers as he left following today's hearing, before being driven off in a black taxi.