The family of a “wonderful” TV producer who took his own life after suffering “chronic” work-related stress and struggling with debilitating migraines say they feel “let down by the system”.

John Balson worked long hours, often across different time zones, to help pull together true crime documentaries for the likes of Netflix and Channel 4.

But the previously fit and healthy dad-of-one — who was expecting a second child at the time of his death last year — started to experience extreme and chronic migraines, dizziness and insomnia.

With the support of his family, he desperately sought help from several medical professionals, including his GP and neurology and psychiatry experts.

It was only after seeing a private specialist the devoted dad was told he likely had vestibular migraine disorder, a complex neurological condition causing dizziness and balance issues.

But despite several consultations, drugs prescribed, and two stints in A&E, John continued to suffer a daily physical and mental torment he described as like “having a hot knife in his head all day”.

He also lost all enjoyment in interests and hobbies which had previously brought him joy and relief from the demands of his highly-pressurised job, such as running, cooking and learning Japanese.

John took his own life on May 17, aged 40.

An inquest into his death took place at Oakwood House in Maidstone on Thursday (February 20) where several members of his family, including wife, Yumeno Niimura and mum Margaret, were in attendance.

It heard police were alerted by members of the public to reports of a man seen on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge at the Dartford Crossing.

Investigating officer Lisa-Ann Gore told the court John’s black Nissan Qashqai was picked up by CCTV travelling between Essex and Kent when it stopped on the bridge and a “single occupant got out the driver’s side” around 5.20pm.

His body was later discovered by the coastguard and a post-mortem report gave the cause of death as “1A multiple severe injuries as a result of 1B fall from height”.

Senior coroner for North West Kent, Roger Hatch, heard how at the time of his death, John faced enormous pressure in his role as a freelance TV producer.

Before he fell ill, he was working on a new series of In the Footsteps of Killers — a true crime series hosted by criminologist Professor David Wilson and Silent Witness actor Emilia Fox — which had been commissioned by Channel 4 and Alaska TV, the production company.

John often worked long hours and his role included researching sensitive subjects, often around “horrific” murders and for one documentary series, paedophile cases stretching back to the 1990s.

A report detailing his contact with various medical professionals in the weeks leading up to his death was read to the court by Isabelle Ritouret, a doctor involved in his care, and described numerous times he’d expressed thoughts of suicide.

She described an initial meeting on April 18 where John had told medics he “could not cope with the pain in his head”, describing his mood as constant “despair and agony”.

He told them he “shouldn’t have done so much work as a documentary filmmaker”, and admitted to having “suicidal thoughts”.

Despite this, medics felt reassured he didn’t intend to act on these thoughts as he “wanted to be here for his family”, including his wife who was pregnant with their second child.

Just three days later, John was rated as “high risk” by a doctor after discussing self-harm and suicidal ideation and hearing from John’s mother, who was living with the family and felt she “couldn’t keep him safe”.

A day later he visited the emergency department at Queen's Hospital in London but was discharged without a psychological risk assessment.

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Another A&E visit occurred after the family had gone to Broadstairs for a break but later left and returned by train after John started experiencing severe panic attacks.

He continued to express feelings of “hopelessness” over the next few weeks and was frustrated that despite later receiving a vestibular migraine diagnosis he’d seen no improvements in his condition with the drugs prescribed.

“I need to see hope that I can be the person I once was,” he had scribbled down in his journal, which was also shared with the court.

His medical notes report there being bruises on his head due to him “banging a bottle against it in distress”.

When quizzed by a lawyer representing John’s family as to why he was not at any point referred for in-patient care, the doctor told the coroner’s court there was “no immediate risk” to his life and he was “engaged” with treatment for his “intense chronic pain”.

She added she did not believe he intended to action his “suicidal thoughts” and was simply “venting his feelings”.

On May 15 - just two days before his death - John’s counsellor expressed concerns to his GP after the freelancer told him this was “the last time he would speak to me” during a phone call in which he was driving and spoke “very calmly”.

The medic added he felt “protective factors” around his family were, at this stage, “diminishing”.

There was never any care for how the hours or how the stories affected us

In a letter penned to his family, and shared with the court with their consent, John relayed his struggles with mental health and overworking in the factual TV industry.

He said if he had his time again he would have “worked less” and not done so much to impress others.

“Bosses in the TV industry have a lot to answer for,” he said. “We are treated as if we are meat. Worked all hours of the day without a care.

“There was never any care for how the hours or how the stories affected us.”

He added: “I have been a fool not to take more breaks in all of this.

“I just hope this helps make some changes that finally need to be made to stop this happening to anyone else.

“If anyone is reading this who works in that industry or another exploitive industry, stop working so hard and take a break, and don’t be so hard on yourself to make money. It is not worth risking a fate as grotesque as this.

“I was on a knife edge and didn’t know it. Life is nothing without balance. Something I have learnt too late.”

Addressing the court, senior coroner Roger Hatch said: “I’m left with no alternative rather than to conclude the death of John was due to suicide. May I express my sympathies to his family.”

At the conclusion of the inquest, John’s family said they felt “let down by the system”.

In a statement provided they said: “There was no collaborative care - the right hand did not know what the left hand was doing

“Our only consolation in this whole sorry mess is that John is no longer in pain.

“The impact on all of us is incomprehensible and difficult to articulate particularly as we grapple with the loss of such a remarkable and wonderful husband, father and son whose kindness and spirit touched so many lives.”

At the inquest, North East London NHS Foundation Trust said it was rolling out new risk formulating training and considering the insights of families.

A spokesperson said: “We would like to express our heartfelt condolences to the family of Mr Balson and hope the inquest has answered any questions they have.

“We will continue to work with our communities to improve our services.

“We are grateful for our service users’ input on the way we assess risk, our safety management and discharge plans.”

In addition to concerns over his medical care, John’s widow Yumeno Niimura previously described his death as “a failure of the [TV] industry”.

Channel 4 did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.

However, speaking previously, a spokesperson for Channel 4 told Deadline, an entertainment news provider, they were “deeply saddened” by the news of John’s death.

“John was a highly respected and much-loved professional – both amongst his colleagues at Alaska TV and those who worked with him across the industry – and will be sorely missed,” they said.

“We are in ongoing contact with John’s family and offering them our support.”

The broadcaster said it was also in a dialogue with BECTU (the creative industry union) and had engaged an external law firm to “undertake a thorough investigation”.

It is understood a report detailing its findings will be published in the coming weeks.

Paul Sommers, the managing director of Alaska TV, told KentOnline the company was “devastated by what happened” but declined to comment further at this time.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to support John’s wife and two children. It can be viewed here.

For confidential support on an emotional issue, call Samaritans on 116 123 at any time or click here to visit the website.