BBC reality star Jasmine Burkitt had an antipsychotic drug in her system when she died, an inquest has heard.
Jasmine, known as Jazz, appeared in the BBC Three reality show Small Teen Bigger World over a decade ago alongside her mum Bev, who passed away in 2014. The 3ft 11inch star wanted to show that she was just like a regular teenager despite being born with dwarfism.
She died in June at just 28. An inquest into her health was opened after it was heard that Jasmine had been living in a tent and also suffered a decline in her mental health in the weeks previous, reports the Mirror.
She was found "unresponsive" on June 12 and efforts to resuscitate her failed, The Daily Post reports. Post-mortem toxicology reports found that levels of the drug quetiapine - which can be used to treat conditions like schizophrenia, depression and bipolar - were present.
Cardiac failure has been listed as Jasmine’s provisional cause of death, but a full inquest is set to take place at a later date following further investigations, the publication reported from the hearing in Ruthin, North Wales.
Jasmine’s fiancé Lewis Burke announced the sad news of her passing back in June. At the time of her death, her devastated husband-to-be wrote inhis tribute: "She is the most incredible human that ever walked this planet, she is the strongest, funniest, most kindest and purely decent person I've ever known.
“I am truly devastated. She changed my life forever and I'll never be the same."
The 28-year-old from Conwy, North Wales won a legion of fans following her stint on TV and even went on to publish her autobiography in 2013.
After the cameras stopped rolling, Jazz met and found love with Lewis. Since 2021, the couple had been living in a tent in a Denbighshire woodland after telling of their struggles to get a suitable council property.
The couple had also started a blog to keep fans in the loop about their progress, where Lewis broke the sad news of Jazz's death on their joint Facebook page. Finishing his post, Lewis asked fans for privacy but said he would be organising a memorial event in Jazz's memory in the future.
Last year, the couple told of their life living in a bell tent with their dog Loki in Bodelwyddan, Denbighshire, after being unable to secure a council home. Both had a passion for camping and had decided to live out in nature full time.
Speaking to North Wales Live last October, Lewis said: "Living outside amongst nature is really good for my mental health as it is for Jazz; we both suffer from different mental health problems but hearing the dawn chorus and seeing nature really helps us both."
Jazz added: "I think tent life has saved us and made us. Of course there are downsides as I am a bit more vulnerable with my health history.
"Some of the days over the summer living next to a river are some of the happiest I've ever spent. I like being away from people quite a lot and just being amongst nature."
More recently, the couple had bought a touring caravan and were working hard on renovating it to live in. They'd also launched a fundraising appeal to buy a plot of land in the hopes of one day establishing their own off-grid farm.
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