A British coroner has confirmed the verdict of Nevada officials that Who bassist John Entwistle died when an existing heart condition was made worse by the consumption of cocaine. Entwistle was found dead in his room at Las Vegas' Hard Rock Hotel in June at the outset of the band’s latest tour. Although US coroners investigated his death, his body was brought to Britain for burial, meaning a post-mortem had to be conducted here too. Coroner Lester Maddrell yesterday concluded: "The amount of cocaine found to be present was not a huge amount, but in someone with preexisting and naturally occurring heart disease, it could bring about a fatal stopping in the rhythm of the heart”.
Elsewhere in Who health news, Pete Townshend has told the Sun that his hearing has further deteriorated since the band’s summer tour. Townshend suffers from a hearing condition called tinnitus – a common condition for performers who are regularly in close proximity to loud music without ear-protection. "My right ear has suffered badly,” he told the paper. “I've no idea what I can do about this.”