The devatated family of Thomas Kingston, the husband of Lady Gabriella Windsor, have shared an important warning warning after he took his own life. The financier was just 45 when he died last February, five years after he married the Prince and Princess Michael of Kent's daughter at St George's Chapel. An inquest into Thomas's death at Gloucestershire Coroner's Court was told he had initially been given sertraline, a drug used to treat depression, and zopiclone, a sleeping tablet, by a GP at the Royal Mews Surgery, a practice at Buckingham Palace used by royal household staff, after complaining of trouble sleeping following stress at work.

Once a hostage negotiator, Thomas later returned to the surgery saying the medication was not making him feel better. His doctor moved him from sertraline to citalopram but in the days leading up to his death he stopped taking the medication. On February 25, Thomas died from a catastrophic head injury at his parents' home in the Cotswolds. A gun was found near his body. In an interview with BBC Radio 4's Today programme this week, Thomas's mother Jill Kingston told how her son had visited his parents for lunch, where they spent time reading, relaxing and sitting by the fire. "He was fun," she said. "We were laughing about various things.".

After taking their dogs for a walk, Thomas's father Martin Kingston returned to the house to find him missing, joining Jill in trying to find him. "There was a room nearby where he would have put all his stuff so we knew he'd gone up there, so that's where I went to look for him," said Jill. "When I went up it was all quiet and he obviously wasn't up there so I went back to the house and checked his room and all his bags were all ready for going back to London, so I went back up and that's when I noticed the locked door.".

Holding back tears in the radio interview, Martin added: "I would like him to be remembered as someone with a big smile on his face, while helping people to do difficult things". He called for a change in the way anti-depressants are prescribed, believing both the patient and the people close to them should be told more explicitly about the potential side effects of the medication, including what can happen if they stop taking it and being asked to sign a document to that effect. We'd really like to see that a person, a spouse, a partner, a parent, a close friend, somebody, was going to walk with them through it. Maybe they should be at that signing time.".

Police concluded Thomas's death was not treated as suspicious. A post-mortem was carried out after his death, with a provisional cause of death given as a traumatic wound to the head. At a previous hearing, Martin described the financier's death as "unexpected" and "impulsive", with evidence of his son "planning for the future". A joint statement released by Lady Gabriella and his family read: "It is with the deepest sorrow that we announce the death of Thomas Kingston, our beloved husband, son and brother. Tom was an exceptional man who lit up the lives of all who knew him. His death has come as a great shock to the whole family and we ask you to respect our privacy as we mourn his passing.".

Royal sources have said Thomas was well-liked within royal circles and had known many of the younger royals for years. Prince William was reported to have been "shocked and devastated" at the news. King Charles and Queen Camilla sent their "most heartfelt thoughts and prayers" to Gabriella and the Kingston family. On March 2 last year, a private funeral was held at the Chapel Royal, followed by a reception at St James's Palace. The congregation of 140 people included close family and friends of Lady Gabriella and the Kingstons, among them William, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, the Duke of Kent and Princess Alexandra.