Angler died in fall at lakeside lodge

AFISHING fanatic who had been drinking gin from a pint glass while on the first night of his holiday in Devon was found dead the next morning following a fatal fall.

Alfred Wright, who was a well-known and popular visitor at Kingslakes Holidays in Beaworthy, was found by the co-owner of the family-run business when he failed to turn up to present them with a gift he had made for them during lockdown.

An inquest at Exeter’s County Hall yesterday heard how the 72-year-old, of Romford, East London, arrived at the 40-acre lakeside holiday haven on August 15, 2020, and was holidaying alone because his friend who was due to accompany him was unwell.

Mr Wright, a keen coarse fisherman who had been making annual trips to Kingslakes for the past five years, had been looking forward to a week of fishing on the site’s lakes and had enjoyed drinking in its bar before settling into his lodge by one of the lakes in the afternoon following his arrival.

In a statement, site manager Emma Clements, who co-runs Kingslakes with her partner, recalled how they had got to know Mr Wright well over the years, and that he had arrived in an “excited mood”.

That evening they visited the father-of-two in his lodge after being invited over for drinks, and she said how he had shown them his ‘drinks cabinet’ of spirits and had offered to pour them what he called an ‘Alfie gin’.

Miss Clements recalled they left at around 7.30pm and had arranged to meet him at the site the following morning at 10am for him to give them a sundial he had crafted for them.

When he failed to show up the next day, she went to his lodge and found him dead on the floor of his bedroom dressed in the same clothing he had been wearing the night before.

Police reports told how Mr Wright had been witnessed staggering around his lodge intoxicated before his death, and that 20 bottles of gin were found, including a pint glass that smelt of gin.

It was confirmed that there were no suspicious circumstances, and a bloodstain with hair in had been found on a wall at the bottom of the stairs which was consistent with a head injury.

A postmortem examination confirmed the cause of his death was multiple injuries, and a contributory factor was alcohol intoxication.

The report stated his injuries, including to the head, suggested a substantial fall onto his left side or back. Mr Wright’s GP confirmed he suffered from a number of health conditions, including an aneurysm, asthma, type 2 diabetes and angina.

His brother-in-law, Alan Norton, described him as a popular man with a wide circle of friends and that he had many interests, including playing darts, fishing and gardening. He was also a skilled tradesman who had been retired for around 10 years.

Coroner Philip Spinney recorded a conclusion of accidental death.