Neil Smith’s Big Issue ID

AN inquest into the death of a Big Issue seller who spent 17 years on a pitch in Holloway Road has concluded that his passing was drug-related.

Neil Smith, who sold the newspaper outside Waitrose for almost two decades, was rushed to hospital in June after becoming unwell.

While in the emergency department of the Whittington he quickly deteriorated, and was diagnosed with pneumonia that had turned septic.

Questions had been raised over how and why Mr Smith’s condition worsened so quickly, but assistant coroner Adam Smith said on Tuesday he was suffering “the effects of taking an excess of heroin and methadone in the context of his long-standing substance misuse disorder”.

Friends and family had laid flowers and cards at the spot where he had sold the newspaper last summer, and spoke of a “kind and gentle” man who always talked to everyone.

Born in Tamworth, Mr Smith moved to San Diego with his parents and brother when he was five. He later returned to the UK, but lost touch with some members of his family as he faced struggles with addiction.

Mr Smith’s cousins, who had not seen him in more than three decades, spoke to the Tribune after the inquest.

They remembered him as a “bright and lively” boy, with “big, beautiful eyes”.

Carol Harries-Wood and Jackie Casey recalled travelling across the Atlantic to visit Mr Smith’s family as teenagers, and Mr Smith’s father working with cars and motorcycles – a passion which Neil later inherited.

While in Islington, Mr Smith rescued a dog, Honey, who remained by his side for seven years.

“He was so devoted to this dog, it was the most important thing to him,” Mr Smith’s friend Tammy Putzu told the Tribune back in July.

“I miss him a lot because I would text him every day. People loved him, he knows everyone, everyone would stop and talk to him,” she had added.

Mr Smith is survived by his mother Rosemary, his brother, his daughter, and his granddaughter, all of whom live in the United States.