He was Britain’s best known celebrity publicist – a confidante of the stars.

But now Max Clifford is a jailed sex offender, starting an eight-year term for a string of indecent assaults.

A court in London heard that Clifford was a master of manipulation who used his power and celebrity contacts to prey on girls seeking a career in showbusiness. His victims were as young as 15.

Clifford, 71, denied the charges dating back to the 1970s and 1980s.

Judge Anthony Leonard ruled that Clifford should serve at least half his eight year sentence in jail.

“Our specially-trained officers will continue to work tirelessly with colleagues at the Crown Prosecution Service to bring sex offenders, whether recent or not, to justice,” said senior investigating police officer, Detective Chief Inspector Michael Orchard outside Southwark Crown Court.

“Over the last 12 months, we have seen an increase of over 1,400 allegations of sexual abuse reported to the Metropolitan Police Service.”

Clifford’s is the first conviction from an inquiry sparked by revelations that late BBC TV presenter Jimmy Savile had been a prolific sex offender over decades.

Police probing claims of historic sex abuse are continuing to investigate a number of other celebrities.