Sir Bobby Charlton, an England and Manchester United legend, died at eighty-six in Macclesfield General Hospital on 21st October. During a 17-year first-team career with United, he won three league titles, a European Cup, and an FA Cup. Thousands of fans have left tributes at Old Trafford, with the area in front of the famous Trinity statue – where he is immortalised alongside team-mates George Best and Denis Law – flooded with memorabilia and flowers.
The inquest at Cheshire Coroner’s Court heard Sir Bobby was living in The Willows in Knutsford, a nursing home caring for patients with dementia. Barbadian Jacqueline Devonish, Senior Coroner for Cheshire, who formally started her role in August last year, concluded his death was accidental. The hearing was told Sir Bobby had lost his balance as he stood up from his chair, striking a windowsill and “possibly a radiator”.
Staff performed a full-body check, noted no visible injuries, and recorded that his mobility seemed unaffected. They later noticed swelling on his back, and paramedics were called to the centre, where he had been receiving respite care since July.,
He was then taken to a local hospital before moving to Macclesfield General Hospital, where a chest X-ray and CT scan revealed he had fractured his ribs and was likely to develop pneumonia, the inquest heard. Doctors then agreed Sir Bobby should be put on end-of-life care, dying five days later.
The inquest heard he had an extensive medical history and had also contracted Covid in September.
Care home manager Tamara Simmons said Sir Bobby “needed support with all aspects of daily living.”
Coroner Jacqueline Devonish gave the cause of death as trauma in the lungs, a fall and dementia. Following the inquest, Karen Slater, associate operations director at MHA, which owns the care home, said Sir Bobby had been living at the site for a short period.
“Staff at the home were very fond of Sir Bobby and cared for and supported him, as they do for all our residents,” she said.
A memorial service will be held at Manchester Cathedral on 13 November, including a procession past Old Trafford, where fans have already laid tributes. More than 80,000 fans have also signed a condolence book in Charlton’s memory.
Manchester United said: “The service will pay tribute to Sir Bobby’s incredible life as a husband, father, grandfather and, of course, as one of the finest footballers this country has ever produced.