Overview

• Senior coroner Jon Heath opened and adjourned both inquests, recording a provisional cause of death as multi-trauma.
• The couple left their Whitby Harbour flat tidy and delivered a letter to a solicitor that included the words, “Susan wants to come with me.”
• They reportedly held hands before falling about 180ft from East Cliff on July 30.
• Emergency services responded after a 7.16pm call and a coastguard helicopter recovered the bodies near Whitby Abbey.
• David, 80, and Susan, 74, had been married for 52 years and were described by acquaintances as devoted and sociable.