Father and son's double suicide

A father and son who "could not live without each other" took their own lives, an Oldham inquest has ruled.

Hugh Robertson, 87, and 58-year-old Donald Robertson hanged themselves in the hallway of their Failsworth home.

The inquest heard the pair were found when a neighbour looked through their letterbox last July.

Coroner Simon Nelson described the father and son as "gentlemen" and said it was one of the saddest cases he had dealt with in 10 years.

Widower Hugh Robertson, a retired engineer had arthritis and high blood pressure, and also complained of lung problems.

Just as they cared for each other in life they were united also in death Simon Nelson Coroner

His sister-in-law, Ida Wrigley, of Gatley, said he kept a pigeon as a pet but killed it when a doctor told him to get rid of it on health grounds.

Donald Robertson never married and lived at home. He worked as a draughtsman and was a qualified glider pilot but gave up his work and hobby after being diagnosed with Dystonia, a neurological movement disorder which causes involuntary spasms.

She said she last saw the pair at their Woodford Road home six weeks before their deaths when they were "laughing and joking".

"I don't think they could have lived without each other," she said.

Police investigating their orchestrated deaths discovered two boxes containing personal documents marked for the attention of their family and solicitor.

'Tremendous bond'

A handwritten note from Hugh Robertson was found on the kitchen table, which referred to his failing health and a worsening of his son's Dystonia.

Mr Nelson said: "There was a tremendous bond between the two of them and I rather feel that as each saw the other deteriorating they discussed and considered a course of action that would effectively, from their perspective, free each of them of the pain that each endured."

The coroner said he was satisfied there was nothing criminally suspicious about their deaths.

He added: "Just as they cared for each other in life they were united also in death."

The coroner recorded verdicts of suicide.