A MAN'S loneliness and failing health ended in his death by hanging, an inquest heard.

John Turner, 74, had been on medication after losing his sense of smell and taste a couple of years prior to his death, on January 11, 2000.

His stepdaughter Jeanette Sheard, of Brooksbank Avenue, Redcar, said this had made him confused, which was a source of distress.

She said: "He used to do the Guardian crossword every day and he said medication he had been given was making him confused and he couldn't do it anymore. Also, his wife had died about three years before and he was extremely lonely."

Neighbours became concerned when he failed to turn up at the pub. PC Jason Hardy entered the property to find that he had hanged himself from the banister with a tie.

Recording an open verdict, Teesside Deputy Coroner Gordon Hetherington said he could not be sure beyond reasonable doubt of his intentions.