A neighbour of William Chapman, the 24-year-old man mauled to death by a tiger at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, has said he became "very approachable" and "very friendly" in the months before his death.
Mr Chapman was pronounced dead on Saturday afternoon after the tiger, named Altai, fatally attacked him at the park in Doncaster. An inquest opening at Doncaster Coroner's Court heard that Mr Chapman had a history of mental illness, a diagnosis of schizophrenia and had suffered bouts of psychosis.
Neighbour recalls changes in behaviour
Josh Anderton, 24, who lived next door to Mr Chapman, said he would spend time in the nearby Ballers Sports Bar. "I knew William, I have been here about four to five months and William was already here. I knew him from work, he was a lovely, lovely man," he said.
"He was absolutely harmless. He definitely struggled with [mental health problems]." The neighbour told the Mirror that Mr Chapman used to come into the pub and "struggle to speak to people". "He would come in and just linger and wouldn't speak," Mr Anderton said. But he said that had changed in recent months and he had "become very approachable, very friendly".
Former child actor's career and final days
The former child actor starred in the ITV production May Contain Nuts alongside Shirley Henderson, best known for playing Moaning Myrtle in the Harry Potter films, as well as playing Edward Jenner as a young boy in the BBC series True Stories.
"He told me he used to be on a kids' TV show," Mr Anderton said. "We were walking to the bus stop and I was watching something on my phone when he said, 'Oh, I used to be on the TV'. He loved his Formula One. All he'd ever speak about was F1."
Mr Anderton continued: "I saw him about a week before [his death]. I went from not seeing him at all to seeing him daily. He used to hold the door open for my partner all the time. The last time I saw him he just seemed normal, he didn't seem out of his usual self. He lived alone, but I didn't go into his flat. He was a very individual person."
Inquest hears of mental health care concerns
Mr Chapman lived independently in a one-bedroom, £120,000 flat on Waterdale, less than five miles away from the wildlife park. The inquest opening heard he was under the care of Doncaster Mental Health Services, run by Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust (RDaSH). Senior coroner for South Yorkshire East Nicola Mundy told the hearing the Trust has commissioned an independent patient safety investigation into the care received by Mr Chapman.
She said: "During my communications with Mr Chapman's family they confirmed he had a history of mental illness, a diagnosis of schizophrenia and had suffered previous bouts of psychosis and was under the care of Doncaster Mental Health Services. Despite his diagnosis Mr Chapman was highly functioning and independent. His family have expressed a number of concerns in relation to his contact with mental health services leading up to his death."
Previously, Mr Chapman's family said in a statement that he "suffered from significant mental illness over a number of years and was consequently prescribed strong medication". Mr Chapman's death came as a shock to Mr Anderton and his partner, who said: "We had no idea what had happened. We just knew someone had jumped into the tiger's enclosure. But then we saw his face on the news. Me and my missus had just woken up and we looked at each other and said, 'What the f***'. He seemed relatively stable-minded, so we never saw that coming."
