Mother choked to death on marshmallows in front of horrified audience

A children's entertainer set up a marshmallow-eating contest which killed a mum at a party, an inquest heard.

Accountant Natalie Buss, 37, was called up by the DJ to see who could 'fit the most marshmallows into their mouths' in front of other parents at the party.

She swallowed handfuls of the dozens of pink and white marshmallows lined up on the podium - but collapsed after leaving the stage at a rugby club.

The popular mother-of-two choked to death in the crowded rugby club before paramedics could clear her airways.

An inquest heard popular entertainer Christopher Gibbons, 34, had been taken on by the club for a fund-raising night for the under-10's rugby team where her son played.

The inquest heard he set up the marshmallow competition. But the fun event took a tragic turn in Beddau RFC near Pontypridd, South Wales, when Natalie left the stage and collapsed in a corridor.

Mr Gibbons - known as 'Roly-Poly' and who was described as an 'established entertainer' - has hosted hundreds of parties as a DJ and entertainer for more than 15 years.

But the inquest heard has 'since decided to stop introducing the game to people' since the marshmallow tragedy.

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Mother, 37, choked to death on marshmallows in front of horrified audience at her son's rugby club after trying to cram as many into her mouth as possible for fundraising competition

The 6ft 6ins entertainer was the DJ compere at the fund-raising event for the junior team which includes her elder son at the rugby club. Mrs Buss won a bingo game where she was called up for the marshmallow contest.

Contestants were given a time limit of 60 seconds to see how many marshmallows they could swallow - cheered on by family and friends in the clubhouse.

Paramedics were called as members of the audience including an off-duty nurse tried to help while a woman ran to a nearby school to fetch a defibrillator.

But Mrs Buss couldn't be saved and the audience was left in shock with many in tears.

Compere Mr Gibbons has been interviewed by police - and the inquest heard he will give evidence to a full jury.

Coroner Gavin Knox told the hearing at Pontypridd Coroners' Court the scope of the inquest would 'focus on risk assessment and risk mitigation relating to the game'.

He said it would assess what happened while she played the game as well as a cause of death - and the 'appropriateness' of the entertainment provided at the club.

Mr Knox said he would feel 'mandated to sit with a jury' for the inquest which is likely to be heard next year.

Mr Knox explained to the court he must sit with a jury if he had reason to suspect Mrs Buss' death could have resulted from a 'notifiable accident'. It has been reported to the Health and Safety Executive for investigation.

The coroner could flag it up as an avoidable accident reported to a government department after it results in someone's death.

Inquests with a jury are often called for when someone's death occurs in circumstances which could be considered 'suspicious, contentious, or have wider ramifications for the public.'

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Mr Knox told her family he could not organise a full inquest for at least six months due to a backlog in jury inquests partly as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

He apologised to Mrs Buss' family and said he would decide on a date as soon as possible.

Mrs Buss, of Church Village, near Pontypridd, died at the Saturday night fund-raiser in October last year.

The inquest will hear from Mrs Buss' husband Elliott Buss, Mr Gibbons, two paramedics who were present at the scene on the evening Mrs Buss died.

Her GP Dr Kate Spencer will also be called to give evidence into her health.

At the time, local Labour MP Alex Davies-Jones said: 'My heart goes out to all those affected and my thoughts are with their family and friends.

'If there is anything I can do to help anyone who might be impacted, please get in touch.'

Rugby club Beddau RFC said the club and community were 'heartbroken' following the tragic death of Natalie Buss.

In a statement, the club said: 'Everybody associated with Beddau RFC and within the community are nothing less than devastated at the weekend's tragic accident and we struggle to comprehend the sense of loss people are feeling.

'This said, we must acknowledge that our loss pales into insignificance in comparison to the loss of a lady who was a wonderful wife, mother and daughter to what was an absolutely tragic turn of events.

'As a club we send out our sincerest, heartfelt condolences to all the family, the close friends and to all those that this has so badly impacted - you are all in our thoughts today.'