Sister to host mental health quiz following the death of her brother

The sister of a life-long Newcastle United fan has spoken about the moment she was told by police that he had taken his own life.

Hayley Lorimer has today opened up about the death of her brother Martin who died in December near where his home in Kent.

In the immediate days before his death Martin had taken to social media to share how he was continuing to struggle with poor mental health.

He was inundated with supportive messages from Newcastle United supporters across the world who he had daily interactions with on Twitter.

Toon Army captain Jamal Lascelles even reached out to offer support but sadly, the father-of-one took his own life less than three weeks before Christmas.

Now Hayley has revealed how her brother left her a note begging her to forgive him for what he was doing because he couldn’t ‘go on any longer’.

She said:

“It’s difficult to sum up what emotions I had when I got the call from the police to tell me that Martin had killed himself.

“I had been touch with him on the Friday and was talking about his plans for Christmas and he seemed fine.

“Then I was contacted on the Monday to say he had taken his own life. He had left a note saying ‘please forgive me for what I am doing but I can’t go on any longer’.

“I think there is a tendency for friends and family to feel guilty about suicide because you just think ‘what if I had called instead of just sending a text to him’.

“I have thought a lot about how if I had called him then maybe I would have picked up on something in his voice that would make me think he wasn’t okay.”

She added:

“One thing that I did realise after Martin died was how well regarded he was. His clients contacted me and said what an amazing person he was.

“His colleagues said he was a natural at looking after people. They said nothing was too much trouble for him and everyone loved him.

“I just wonder whether Martin knew that people felt that way about him and whether it would have made a difference if he did know that.

“What his death has taught me is to just to reach out to people more. To pick up the phone and have a conversation rather than just exchange a text.”

Hayley, who now lives in North Yorkshire, has decided to speak out about her brother’s battle with mental health as she throws her support behind a virtual quiz set to be held in Martin’s memory.

It has been organised by Northumbria Police, the Newcastle United Foundation and a number of Newcastle United supporters groups who Martin interacted with on social media.

The quiz will feature questions from celebrities Gabby Logan, Any and Dec, Newcastle United first team players and legends including Alan Shearer - and Martin’s hero Malcolm MacDonald.

Hayley said:

“After we moved down South, Martin always kept his accent and my dad used to take him to Newcastle matches and he would always go if they played a London team.

“I remember one game he came back and he had been sat in the front row and had shouted to Malcolm McDonald.

“He turned round and gave Martin the thumbs up and when he got home he was just so excited about it so the fact Malcolm is supporting the quiz is surreal for me.

“I knew that he felt Newcastle United was part of his identity but I didn’t realise until after he died what a big part of interacting with the fans groups on Twitter was to him.

“I’m so grateful for the support everyone has shown and I hope this quiz, and Martin’s story, can help even more people have that conversation about mental health.”

Pc Andy Hyde in the Northumbria Police Central Engagement Team has helped plan the quiz alongside organisations including The Chronicle Live, Tyneside Mind, True Faith, NUFC360 and Wor Flags.

The quiz will be streamed live from 7pm on the evening of Saturday, March 27, on the Newcastle Fans TV YouTube channel and a number of other social media platforms.

People will be encouraged to play along at home and interact in the comments of the video. Those playing along with the quiz could also win some Toon Army-themed prizes.