THE body of a man was found in a guest house the night after a party.

It was reported that Eric Hockey, 41, had taken a mixture of cocaine and heroin at a party the night before he was found at Hudsons Guest House in Brighton, an inquest opening heard at Woodvale Crematorium heard.

Police received a call from a man on Christmas Eve saying a man he had known for eight months had died and been found at a room in the Devonshire Place guest house, coroner’s officer Arianna Palermo told assistant coroner Catharine Palmer.

He said he had taken a snowball, a mix of cocaine and heroin, at a party the night before.

Police called ambulance crews who found a man fully-clothed on the floor of a room, with “evidence of drug paraphernalia” around his body.

The body was identified as that of Eric Hockey, who had been staying at the guest house, using a photo on the police database.

A post-mortem provided a provisional cause of death of heroin toxicity.

A full inquest into the cause of his death will be held on April 27.