A PUB manager was found hanged by his partner in their former house, an inquest heard.

Simon Taylor ran the Black Horse pub in Higher Market Street, Farnworth, with his partner, Corrine Houghton and her former husband, Ryan Houghton.

Assistant coroner Sarah Watson was told how 41-year-old Mr Taylor and Mrs Houghton met through Facebook in 2012 and, three years later, moved in together.

Th couple lived in Balmoral Road, Farnworth, but in October last year they moved into the Black Horse pub.

Mrs Houghton told the court that Mr Taylor, a father-of-three, had previously been prescribed medication for anxiety and depression, but had never indicated he wanted to kill himself.

She added that, on December 7 last year, they argued about him spending Christmas savings on online gambling.

The argument continued and two days later he said he was leaving and going back to their previous home.

Mrs Houghton said that when she refused his request for money he returned to the pub and took some speakers to sell.

“He spoke to Ryan after he collected the speakers and said he was going to come in the next day to sort out paperwork and stuff, “ she said.

After a heated exchange of text messages and phone calls she told him she was ‘no longer playing games’ and would block his number.

“I blocked the number for about five minutes and then I unblocked it again,” she told the court. The last communication was at 2.50pm and the next day, December 10, two texts she sent to him went unanswered.

“The old house didn’t have electricity so I just assumed the phone had run out of charge and it was off,” she said.

But at 1pm she went round to the Balmoral Road property, found Mr Taylor hanged in the living room and made unsuccessful attempts to revive him.

Toxicology reports revealed that, in the hours before his death, Mr Taylor had taken cocaine and had drunk more than double the legal drink driving limit of alcohol, but neither was enough to cause his death. A pathologist reported that death was due to hanging.

The inquest heard that Mr Taylor had been taken to hospital in 1999 after taking an overdose and trying to hang himself but, at the time, had said he did not intend to kill himself.

Miss Watson stated that there was not enough evidence establish Mr Taylor committed suicide and recorded a narrative conclusion instead.

“I am content that he deliberately put the ligature round his own neck, however, I cannot be satisfied that he intended to take his own life,” she said.