An award-winning BBC radio presenter and musician died of a heart attack after taking the illegal party drug mephedrone, an inquest heard.
George Webley, 53, who arranged the theme music for Have I Got News For You and The Office, was found collapsed at his home in May this year by his wife. The father-of-four, known to his fans as "Big George", suffered a massive heart attack and was pronounced dead when paramedics arrived at the scene. However, an inquest heard that toxicology tests carried out after George's death revealed the cardiac arrest was triggered by the illegal stimulant mephodrone. The Class-B drug, also known as Meow Meow, has been linked with a string of deaths across Britain and was outlawed in April last year. An inquest held at Milton Keynes Coroner's Court on Monday revealed that Mr Webley suffered a heart attack after taking the drug.
Coroner Thomas Osborne recorded a verdict of death by ''misadventure'' and added that Mr Webley died as a result of taking ''designer drugs.'' He said: ''The verdict should be that Mr Webley suffered quite severe heart disease. ''Because of the cathinones found in his blood, these designer drugs, and his previous illness, it's more likely than not that the final event was caused by the drugs in his system. ''It is wrong to record natural causes. The verdict is he died as a result of misadventure. He was taking the drugs not for taking his own life. ''But this was an action that went wrong and led to his heart attack and subsequent death.''
Mr Webley was found on all fours and struggling for breath at his home in Stony Stratford, near Milton Keynes, Bucks., by his wife Sheila on May 7 this year. The inquest heard the grandfather-of-three's wife opened the back door to give him some fresh air before calling for an ambulance. But the radio presenter, who won a Sony award for his BBC Three Counties show, was pronounced dead when paramedics arrived at the scene. A post-mortem found Mr Webley, who previously suffered a heart attack aged 38, died from Ischaemic heart disease and the illegal use of cathinones.
Mr Webley's career as a radio presenter began in the mid-1990s when he was host on a Saturday late show on GLR, the BBC station for London. In the late 1990s he was given a slot on Horizon Radio near his home in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire. In 2002 he won a gold Sony Award for best music presenter for his show on BBC Three Counties Radio. He also enjoyed a long musical career as a band leader and performer, and composed the theme for comedy show Room 101.
Mr Webley campaigned vociferously for the rights of composers and had a public pay dispute with Hat Trick, the company responsible for Have I Got News for You. David Robery, editor for BBC London 94.9, paid tribute to a ''larger than life'' man following his death. He said: ''Big George lived up to his name in every sense. He will be terribly missed. ''He was a larger than life character with a radio personality to match.''
George is survived by his wife, Sheila, his children, Harry, Twig, Clare and Natalie Jayne, and their three grandchildren.
![:\](https://bluelight.org/xf/BL_Images/Orig_Emoji/wrygrin.gif "wry grin :\")
but I don't think he did OD. Meph must be one of the worst drugs you could take if you have a heart problem.
