In England and Wales, Her Majesty's coroners are known as legal professionals or doctors dealing with death and helping the bereaved in the most caring way possible for more than 800 years, with the profession dating back to the 12th century. The profession is now portrayed fictitiously on a BBC1 show, "The Coroner". In the case of an accidental or unnatural death inquest juries are held by the coroner to determine how the person died.
Senior coroners are the more experienced in the coroner's office, whilst assistant and/or deputy coroners are available should the senior be busy with another case or absent.
There is a regional coroner's office for each area in England and Wales including the cities of London, Manchester and Birmingham, including, until 2013, the Queen's Household. The Coroner of the Queen's Household was most notable for investigating the death of Princess Diana.
Famous Coroners[]
- William Armstrong OBE, Coroner of Norfolk from 1995-2013
- Michael Burgess OBE, Coroner of the Queen's Household from 2002-2013
- John Burton, Coroner of the Queen's Household from 1987-2002
- William Dolman, Coroner of North London from 1993-2007 (Only Coroner to have been a regular BBC broadcaster)
- Louise Hunt, Coroner of Birmingham and Solihull (First female Coroner in Birmingham)
- Chinyere Inyama, Coroner of West London (First black British Coroner)
- Sir Montague Levine, Coroner of South London
- Michael Rose, Coroner of West Somerset from 1984-2015
- Peter Thornton QC, Chief Coroner of England and Wales