Last moments: Louise Speed, pictured with her husband last year, cut her husband down after her teenage sons let her back into the house

Speaking in hushed tones, she added: 'He was a somewhat closed character.
'He liked to take on board everyone else's problems and try to help but was not one to open up himself. He was a very private person in a very public role.'

Four days before he died, Gary Speed had text his wife talking 'in terms of taking his life', the inquest heard.

But Mrs Speed said that immediately after the reference to suicide in their text exchange, Speed began referring immediately to 'moving forward and how me and the boys were so important to him'.

She said he had never spoken in that way (about self-harm) before and had never previously harmed herself.

The day before he died, the 42-year-old former footballer had appeared happy and optimistic during an appearance on the BBC1 show Football Focus.

In a statement read out at the inquest, Newcastle legend Alan Shearer said his friend's death made no sense as Mr Speed did not appear to be worried about anything when they last met at the BBC studios hours before his death.

He said: 'He seemed fine, laughing and joking. Gary didn't appear worried about anything.

'Gary seemed to be enjoying his job as Wales manager and coped with the pressure well.

'He knew what it was like beforehand and some part of him liked to work under pressure.

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