Luther Actor Hanged Himself While Out of Work During Lockdown

LUTHER actor hanged himself while out of work during the first coronavirus lockdown.

The inquest heard how Luke Westlake, aged 26, from Aylesbury, Bucks, who had previously appeared on the BBC drama Luther at the side of Idris Elba hanged himself after first threatening to take his own life during the Covid-19 lockdown.

The evening before he was found dead he had messaged his ex-girlfriend and threatened to commit suicide.

Luke graduated in 2017 from a top drama school in the UK and had appeared in several dramas including Doctors, No Offence and Luther. The inquest heard how being out of work during the lockdown has stressed the actor out, and that he was also suffering after the breakup of his relationship.

The court heard how Luke had already tried to take his own life in both April and June. It was only a week after June’s first attempt that Luke managed to successfully carry out his threat, the day after he had messaged his ex-girlfriend.

Assistant Coroner Michael Walsh said, “Luke was aged 26 years at the time of his death. He had a history of anxiety and depression and substantial misuse by way of alcohol and cannabis, used as a coping mechanism.”

He also spoke of how “Luke found it difficult to deal with stressful triggers – his relationship and his employment. It was noted that it was not uncommon for him to threaten to harm himself – such an occasion occurred on June 17.

“He had threatened to take his life and he had taken cannabis shortly before he died.”

The inquest was concluded with a verdict of suicide.

Thank you for taking the time to read this news article “Luther Actor Hanged Himself While Out of Work During Lockdown”. For more UK daily news, Spanish daily news and Global news stories, visit the Euro Weekly News home page.