The parents of Thomas Kingston have called for clearer guidelines on antidepressant prescriptions, one year after their son’s tragic death.
Martin and Jill Kingston spoke to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme about their son, who was married to Lady Gabriella Windsor.
Holding back tears, Martin Kingston said: “I would like him to be remembered as someone with a big smile on his face, while helping people to do difficult things.”
The couple emphasised the need for better patient awareness of medication risks and side effects.
Thomas Kingston’s parents issue emotional rallying call one year after his tragic death
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Thomas Kingston died in February 2024 at his parents’ home in the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire, from a self-inflicted head injury.
He married Lady Gabriella Windsor – daughter of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent – at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle in 2019.
In the months before his death, Kingston sought medical help for work-related stress and sleep issues.
He was initially prescribed sertraline and zopiclone by a GP at the Royal Mews Surgery within Buckingham Palace, before being switched to citalopram when these proved ineffective.
Thomas Kingston died in February 2024 at his parents’ home in the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire
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The Kingstons advocated for patients and their families to be fully informed about potential medication side effects, including suicidal thoughts.
They highlighted risks associated with both taking and stopping antidepressant medications.
The couple proposed a new system where patients would sign documents confirming their understanding of these risks.
On the day of his death, Thomas had appeared “normal” and was “fun”, his mother recalled, saying: “We were laughing about various things.”
Thomas Kingston was found dead at the age of 45 in February 2024
PA
The family had spent the day relaxing, reading and sitting by the fire.
In January, senior coroner for Gloucestershire Katy Skerrett questioned current medical guidance in a prevention of future deaths report.
She specifically challenged whether advice to “persist” with antidepressants remains appropriate when patients experience adverse side effects.
Toxicology reports showed Kingston had stopped taking all medication in the days before his death, with only caffeine and small amounts of zopiclone found in his system.
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Thomas and Gabriella married in 2019 following several years of dating Getty
SSRIs are currently prescribed to more than four million people in the UK, with adverse side effects flagged by coroners 40 times.
Lady Gabriella Windsor described her marriage to Thomas as “deeply loving and trusting” in a statement read during the December inquest.
She believed his death was “likely provoked” by an adverse reaction to medication, stating: “If this could happen to Tom, this could happen to anyone.”
Psychiatric expert Dr David Healy testified that SSRIs could increase anxiety and suicidal thoughts in some cases.
Dr Healy said Thomas’s anxiety from sertraline indicated SSRIs “did not suit him” and emphasised the need for “a much more explicit statement saying that these drugs can cause people to commit suicide.”