The husband of Australian television presenter Erin Jayne Plummer was found dead at the foot of a cliff and is believed to have taken his own life, it has been revealed, two years after the devastating death of his wife.
Alan Plummer had plans to go swimming with a friend at 6.30am on Sunday on Sydney’s northern beaches, but the father-of-three never arrived.
His friend called the police to request a welfare check, and officers showed up at Plummer’s nearby home in the suburb of Freshwater to inform his 18-year-old daughter, who had been out Saturday night, that his father had disappeared.
The 49-year-old man’s body was found an hour later by a lifeguard at the foot of a cliff on Freshwater beach. Tragically, it is believed that he took his own life.
“Officers from Northern Beaches Police Area Command will prepare a report for coroner’s information into the death of a 49-year-old man in Freshwater on Sunday,” a NSW Police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia. No further details were available.
A source familiar with the situation described Mr Plummer’s death as “tragic”, given that it came after the death by suicide of his Studio 10 host wife in May 2022.
The tragedy has left the couple’s three daughters, aged 18, 15 and 11, orphaned.
Alan Plummer, 49, was found dead on Freshwater Beach on Sunday morning.
Alan and Erin Jayne Plummer are pictured on their wedding day. The couple had three daughters together.
Mr Plummer’s body was found by a lifeguard at the foot of a cliff on Freshwater beach (pictured)
A source said Plummer had just sold the family’s four-bedroom home in September as she planned to move with her youngest daughter to Queensland.
Alan’s death leaves the couple’s three daughters orphaned
Another source familiar with the situation told Daily Mail Australia that the couple’s eldest daughter had just finished her final exams at high school and was celebrating a friend’s 18th birthday the night before her body was found. father.
The source said Plummer had just sold the family’s four-bedroom home in Freshwater in September as she planned to move with her youngest daughter to Queensland to be closer to her middle son, who is studying at a school in the north with a sports scholarship.
The property, which was purchased by the Plummers for $675,000 in 2002, was initially put up for sale in March of this year, but sold for an undisclosed amount two months ago before going up for auction.
The tragedy has left the community in mourning, and locals are devastated for the three girls.
“They’re good kids,” the source said. “Their parents have dozens of friends and the community will rally around them.”
Alan was the former director of a now defunct company called Shine VIP Tours Australia PTY LTD.
Another source revealed that he had previously struggled with medical and mental health issues.
Erin Jayne Plummer was a beloved Studio 10 host and was famous for her roles on aerobics television shows and infomercials.
The couple married in the early 2000s and had three daughters.
His wife Erin was just 42 when she died due to mental health issues, and friends said at the time that they wished they could have done more to “help her carry the weight of her grief.”
She was a loving mother and “loved her daughters infinitely”, friends said, but she struggled during the Covid pandemic and had not been “her lively, energetic self” in the weeks before her death.
Erin’s father Peter described his daughters as his ‘little mini versions of her’ and, speaking at her funeral, the presenter’s eldest daughter shared her grief at losing her beloved mother.
“Every day that goes by I still don’t believe he’s gone,” the 15-year-old said.
‘That a family of three girls will grow up without our mother. This is the thought I can’t seem to get over.
Following his death, a GoFundMe campaign was launched to help the Plummer family and raised more than $28,000.
Erin Jayne Plummer was a beloved Studio 10 host and was famous for her roles on aerobics television shows and infomercials.
‘Mom was loved by everyone. She was selfless and gave her all to take my sisters and me to 40 activities each week.
“She brought so much light to the world that we didn’t realize her heart was hurting so much.”
The teenager concluded his moving tribute: ‘Mom, I hope heaven treats you better than we do. She is no longer ours, but we are hers forever.
Erin’s youngest daughter also spoke, telling those gathered: ‘My mom was the best person who ever lived. I will always love you very much mom.’
During her career as an advertorial presenter, she appeared on Studio 10, TVSN, Mornings with Kerri-Anne and The Morning Show, and earned the nickname ‘The Danoz Girl’.
She also hosted Aerobics Oz Style for six years.
The aerobics instructional television series, which aired from 1982 to 2005, had a global audience of 40 million people at its peak and was broadcast in more than 80 countries.
In addition to her television career, Erin was an accomplished synchronized swimmer who represented Australia at three world championships and won 11 national titles.
Erin came into the spotlight at a young age when she was discovered on Sydney’s Manly Beach and chosen for a tourism campaign that aired on NBC in the United States.
But it was her role as a television presenter for which she was best known. Over the years, he promoted everything from massage chairs and exercise programs to slimming jeans and steam mops.
When not in front of the camera, Erin also did countless voiceovers for television.
Following his death, a GoFundMe campaign was launched to help the Plummer family hire a gardener and housekeeper to “keep the house running” and raised nearly $28,000.
UK: For help and support, call Samaritans for free from a UK phone, completely anonymously, on 116 123 or visit samaritans.org
AU: For 24/7 confidential support, call Lifeline 13 11 14 or further 1300 22 4636