A veteran BBC political correspondent and his partner were found dead in the same room, an inquest heard.
John Stevenson, 68, broadcast many stories from Westminster during his four decade career, including the political response to the 9/11 attacks.
He was found in his home in Aberdare, South Wales, in March after police forced their way into the property.
His body was on the floor next to his bed, yards away from his partner.
The inquest heard neither men had any signs of injuries to the bodies – and a coroner ordered a full hearing into their deaths.
The alarm was raised by district nurses who had been unable to get a response.
A post-mortem examination carried out by Dr Stephen Leadbeatter at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff led to the provisional cause of death being given as “unascertained”.
Mr Stevenson’s family has consented to his remains being used for medical research purposes.
The coroner adjourned the inquest until January, 2022. The inquest into his partner’s death was not opened at the same time and he was not named.
The inquest at Pontypridd heard that police were not treating the deaths as suspicious.
Mr Stevenson, who was born in Bangor, Gwynedd, had worked as a journalist for over four decades before retiring in 2013.
Head of news and current Affairs at BBC Wales Garmon Rhys said: “He was an articulate commentator who had a sharp mind and his conversational manner made his reports memorable.
“As we remember John today, we remember an extremely likeable character who was a joy to work with.”
Mr Stevenson had said he wanted to become an MP – but felt pressure as a gay man “to comply” and described getting married as “part of the disguise”.
Mr Stevenson joined the BBC in Cardiff as a researcher but left “under a big black cloud” because he was an alcoholic.
He recounted “a lost decade” where he became homeless, losing contact with family and friends.
Mr Stevenson described being arrested as a turning point, which is when he started fighting his addiction and rejoined the BBC in 1997.
He worked his way up to the role of political correspondent before retiring.
Source: Mirror
