Paralysed campaigner died filming Apple series, inquest hears
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Claire Lomas died on 22 August 2024 after her adapted microlight veered off a road and hit a large rock following landing in Jordan on 15 July, while filming for an Apple-commissioned series called "Adventure" produced by Atlantic Productions.
- Lomas was a paralysed charity campaigner who raised £925,000 for the Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation and became known as the "bionic woman" after completing the 2012 London Marathon in 17 days using a ReWalk exoskeleton suit.
- Senior producer Lina Zilinskaite told the inquest Lomas was "really delighted" about the microlight filming opportunity, and confirmed no weather, mechanical, or camera-related issues were identified with the flight itself.
- Microlight designer Ben Ashman of Flylight Airsports said Lomas posted on Facebook about putting her "brave pants" on the night before — behaviour he called "unusual" — but proceeded after she told him "let's do it," adding he "didn't want to take away her confidence."
- The coroner recorded Lomas's provisional cause of death as multiple severe traumatic injuries; she had approximately 150 hours of microlight flying experience and had purchased her own adapted aircraft in 2022 or 2023.
- Lomas's husband Dan Spincer and best friend Stuart Hall raised her lifetime charity total past £1m after her death; her family did not attend the inquest because it was "too painful" being close to the anniversary of her death.
Why it matters: The inquest testimony establishes that Lomas's stress signals before the flight — including an unusual Facebook post — were flagged by her pilot, yet the challenge proceeded after she insisted. With no mechanical, weather, or equipment issues identified, the hearing is examining decision-making around a paralysed participant's solo flight for a major streaming production.
Ask SkimNews
