Barney Shelton was an employee of Willie Piggott who passed on news to Emily Nugent when Ernest Bishop was arrested for offending against the public morality while on a photography job for Piggott in Spain in 1971. Dressed in a purple suit and brightly-coloured tie and shirt combo, Barney strutted into the Rovers and was taken through to the back by Annie Walker, where he informed her that Piggott had received a letter from Sheila Miller, one of Ernie's models, informing him of the charge. Ernie had taken Karen Spencer down to the beach to do shots of the hotel with Karen in a swimsuit. He was adjusting Karen's bra strap when the police swooped and misconstrued the situation.