A decorator who worked for the Royal Family for over three decades was found dead in October 2025 after King Charles reportedly expressed dissatisfaction with a paint job, an inquest heard on Wednesday, February 13, 2026.
Christopher John Eadie, 63, was discovered by his partner, Joanne, in the garden of his home on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk on October 10, 2025, according to evidence presented at Norfolk Coroner’s Court. Paramedics were unable to revive him.
Mr. Eadie had been a self-employed decorator at Sandringham for more than 30 years, undertaking projects for both Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III. His brother, Mark Eadie, told the court that his brother’s “perfectionism” often led to him being assigned “the top jobs” within the royal household, including the bedroom of the Prince and Princess of Wales.
“My brother was absolutely brilliant at his job,” Mark Eadie stated. “He had incredible attention to detail and wouldn’t let anything head unless it was perfect.” He added that Chris was a private man, but revealed he had once met the children of William and Kate in the garden, describing them as “lovely.”
The inquest revealed that the incident that deeply affected Mr. Eadie involved a request from King Charles to repaint a pagoda over a Buddha statue at Sandringham. Despite finding the requested colour scheme “a bit garish,” Mr. Eadie carried out the work as instructed. However, the King subsequently ordered the pagoda to be repainted by a different contractor.
“After all that detailed preparation, someone else was given the job. He was devastated,” Mark Eadie told the court. The loss of the work, following a period of decreasing commissions due to management changes and the introduction of novel contractors at the estate, had a significant impact on his brother.
Evidence presented to the court also indicated a decline in Mr. Eadie’s physical health around the time of his death. He had begun losing weight due to a lack of appetite and expressed concerns about potentially having cancer. His brother stated that his mental health was deteriorating alongside his worries about his physical wellbeing and the Sandringham work.
Mr. Eadie’s partner told the court that the reduction in work at Sandringham had deeply upset him, and that the pagoda incident was a particular source of distress. She also recounted that she had found him sitting in the dark at home six weeks before his death, fearing he might be contemplating self-harm. In the days leading up to his death, she noted he had become unusually affectionate, a behaviour she now believes may have been a way of saying goodbye.
Police officer David Norris testified that officers discovered a handwritten note and an open bottle of spirits at the scene. Toxicology tests revealed a small amount of alcohol in Mr. Eadie’s system, as well as elevated levels of paracetamol, though not at a level considered fatal.
A post-mortem examination concluded that Mr. Eadie died by hanging. Edward Parsons, the land agent for Sandringham, clarified that Mr. Eadie was not a direct employee of the estate but one of many independent contractors used for various projects.
Area Coroner for Norfolk, Yvonne Blake, ruled that she was “not satisfied that he intended to die,” citing a decline in his mental health and distress over his work as factors that impaired his clarity of mind. She recorded a death by suicide, but qualified it by stating that the deterioration in his mental health prevented her from concluding intent.
