Couple died together as they did not wish to live without each other

For confidential support, Samaritans can be contacted for free on 116 123 By DAN WOODLAND, NEWS REPORTER Published: 16:37 BST, 7 October 2025 | Updated: 16:37 BST, 7 October 2025

A devoted couple who had been married for nearly 60 years chose to died together after deciding they could not live without each other, an inquest heard.John Foulston, 86, and his wife Annabel, 85, were found dead at their home in Topsham, Exeter, in February last year.Devon, Plymouth and Torbay Coroner's Court heard the couple were found deceased in their living room by family friends who they had asked to come round the previous day to sign some documents.On entering the house, a note was pinned to an inner door asking them not to enter and to inform the local undertaker.Mr Foulston, a retired biochemical engineer, and his wife, a former podiatrist, had left several notes and audio recordings outlining their intentions, the inquest was told. The couple, who had married in 1967 and did not have children, had also cleared their home of some of their possessions.Family friend Veronika Clayden said Mr Foulston had suffered a fractured hip the previous year and his wife had osteoporosis.She said the couple 'would not be able to cope without the other' if they died and had clearly been planning their deaths for a long time. A devoted couple who had been married for nearly 60 years chose to died together after deciding they could not live without each other, an inquest heard. Pictured: Plymouth Register and Coroners Court'Since John's fall, they were both stressed about the future, but not depressed or anything like that,' Mrs Clayden said in a written statement read to the court.'I think that they'd planned their deaths for a long time - it was like a military operation. They never mentioned anything about it to me beforehand.'After their deaths, I found an envelope crammed full of assisted dying clippings from papers. They had obviously been looking at assisted dying for a number of years.'Mrs Clayden said the couple had left a voice recording outlining their intentions.She added: 'They did everything together. They made their decisions together. They didn't want to end up in worse health. One would not be able to cope without the other.'A police investigation found there was no evidence of any third party involvement in the deaths of the couple.Detective Sergeant Charlie Wilkes told the hearing the couple had left detailed instructions about their financial affairs following their deaths, and also a letter addressed to the coroner and a duty doctor.Area coroner Alison Longhorn gave the cause of death for Mr and Mrs Foulston as asphyxiation and recorded conclusions of suicide.She said that the couple had left letters stating they had decided to take their lives of their own free will after struggling with the absence of legal euthanasia in the UK. The coroner added that, in the letter, the couple said they don't want to be considered as people who had taken their own lives by suicide, however she was legally obliged to record their deaths as such. 'Whilst I record the conclusion of suicide, I acknowledge that their wish that they would not want it to be seen as such, and had there been a legally and socially recognised and accepted euthanasia, they absolutely would have taken that route, and I don't doubt that for a moment,' she said. For confidential support, Samaritans can be contacted for free on 116 123