Family of young man killed by tiger at Yorkshire Wildlife Park describe him as “bright, warm and engaging”

The family of William Chapman, who was killed by a tiger at a wildlife park, have described the 23-year-old as a “bright, warm and engaging young man”.

Mr Chapman, who was mauled to death when he entered the tiger enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park in Doncaster on Saturday, had suffered from “significant mental illness over a number of years”, his family added in a statement.

“The family are utterly devastated by their loss and are struggling to come to terms with what has happened,” they said on Tuesday.”

“The publication and circulation of deeply offensive media content is causing them severe distress at an exceptionally vulnerable time. We ask people to stop doing this.”

“The family are hopeful that the relevant authorities will do their upmost to get to the bottom of why our amazing son did what he did.”

In the statement, his family added: “William was a bright, warm and engaging young man whom his family dearly loved – and William loved them back.
“Sadly, William suffered from significant mental illness over a number of years and was consequently prescribed strong medication.

“It will be for the coroner to decide what part this played in his death.

“We would ask everybody to respect that process.”

As a child, Mr Chapman appeared in ITV’s May Contain Nuts, alongside Harry Potter actress Shirley Henderson, and in the BBC’s True Stories series.

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