Graham Thorpe, the former England cricketer, descended into depression after losing his job as batting coach following the 2022 Ashes series, an inquest has heard. The 55-year-old died on 4 August 2024 after being hit by a train at a Surrey railway station. His widow, Amanda Thorpe, later confirmed he had taken his own life.
The inquest at Surrey Coroner’s Court in Woking on Wednesday learned that Thorpe had been diagnosed with anxiety and depression in 2018 and had attempted suicide in 2022. The court was told that an incident involving a leaked video in Australia that year left him distraught. The video, reportedly filmed after England’s 4-0 Ashes loss, showed Tasmanian police breaking up a drinking session involving players from both sides.
Thorpe’s father, Geoff Thorpe, said the video incident “caused catastrophic damage” to his son, adding that those responsible for his care could have done more to intervene. Amanda Thorpe stated that apart from a bout of depression in 2018, her husband had no significant psychological issues until 2020, but found lockdown and the pandemic very stressful.
She said the leak of a video he shared with friends was “blown out of all proportion,” leaving him distraught. The termination of his employment with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) came as a “real shock” and marked the “start of the decline of his mental health.” Thorpe’s father described his son becoming “more and more desperate and helpless in the last year of his life.”
The ECB’s chief medical officer, Professor Nick Peirce, stated that after Thorpe’s employment ended in February 2022, his private health insurance was extended until May. He noted that at no time during Thorpe’s tenure with the ECB was there any concern regarding risk of self-harm. Thorpe played for England from 1993 to 2005, scoring 16 Test centuries and earning 182 caps across all formats before a 12-year coaching career.
