A former Manchester City doctor tragically fell to his death from the very same spot where he proposed to his wife 27 years earlier, an inquest has heard.
54-year-old Dr Jamie Butler – who was from Altrincham, and previously had worked at Manchester City, Sale Sharks Rugby Club, and Altius Healthcare throughout his career – popped the question on the famous Striding Edge side of the Lake District’s third highest peak, Helvellyn, all the way back in 1994.
But when he and his wife Margaret decided to relive the romantic moment all over again by returning their last November, this was when Jamie sadly died.
Cockermouth Coroner’s Court heard that the couple had been walking together up the mountain, but when they reached Striding Edge, Mrs Butler stopped to catch her breath and she told of watching her husband disappear into the mist as he went on to find the spot.
After he had been gone for a while, Mrs Butler shouted after him, but got no response and eventually became “concerned something had happened to him”, so she called police.
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Due to poor visibility during the misty weather, the court heard that the GP fell and was subsequently pronounced dead at the scene after suffering significant injuries, including a fractured skull.
Dr Jamie Butler fell to his death from the famous Striding Edge side of the Lake District’s third highest peak, Helvellyn / Credit: Geograph (Alan O’Dowd)
Mountain rescuers later found his body below the ridge, and the coroner concluded that his death was an accident.
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Mrs Butler paid tribute to her husband, who she said “was a loving husband with two twin boys that he adored.”
“He died doing what he loved [and] he will be forever missed,” she concluded.
Doug Jones – Head Physiotherapist at Altius Healthcare in Hale, who worked with Dr Butler at Sale Sharks when he was part of the physio team – paid tribute to him in a statement to the Daily Mail: “He was a really fantastic guy who didn’t have a bad word to say about anyone. He was very loved by the staff and players at both Sale and Man City… you just couldn’t not warm to him.”
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Dr Butler was also described as a “wonderful guy who will be very missed by his friends and family”.
Featured Image – Altius Healthcare
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Police appeal to find next of kin after man found outside Palace Theatre
Daisy Jackson
Police are trying to track down the family of a man who died after being found unresponsive outside the Palace Theatre in Manchester.
The man, who has now been named as Jonathan Bernard Carroll, was seen outside the city centre theatre at around 6.30am on Tuesday 12 November.
Emergency services rushed to the scene and Mr Carroll was taken to hospital.
Tragically, the 47-year-old passed away a short time later.
A large cordon was in place on Whitworth Street and Oxford Road while police and security attended the incident.
Greater Manchester Police are now appealing to find his next of kin.
It’s believed that he resided in the Salford area of Greater Manchester.
Anyone with any information should contact the Coroner’s Office on 0161 856 1376.
Greater Manchester public urged to help get people ‘off the streets and on their feet’ before Christmas
Emily Sergeant
Locals are being urged to help get hundreds of people “off the streets and back on their feet” this festive season.
As the temperatures told colder by the day, and Christmas creeps closer and closer, Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity is bringing back ‘1000 Beds for Christmas’, and the massively-important initiative is aiming to provide 1,000 nights of accommodation to people at risk of homelessness before the big day arrives.
Forming part of the ongoing ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme, this festive fundraising mission is designed to provide food, shelter, warmth, and dedicated vital wrap-around support for those who need it most.
The charity says it wants to build on the “incredible success of 2023”, which raised more than £55,000 and provided 1,800 nights of accommodation.
Stockport-based property finance specialists, Together – which has supported the campaign for the last two years – has, once again, generously pledged to match every public donation for the first £20,000 raised.
Unfamiliar with the ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme? Since 2017, when rough sleeping peaked, the initiative has helped ensure a significantly-higher rate of reduction in the numbers of people facing a night on streets in Greater Manchester than seen nationally.
The landmark scheme has given people the chance to rebuild their lives, while also giving them access to key services and opportunities that allows them to stay off the streets for good.
Despite the scheme’s recent success, organisations across Greater Manchester are under “a huge amount of pressure” to meet the demand for their services this winter, and given the current economic outlook, household budgets will continue to be squeezed – leaving people on the sharp end of inequality and poverty.
Emily Sergeant -
14th February 2022 
