The husband of Australian TV presenter Erin Jayne Plummer was found dead at the bottom of a cliff and is believed to have committed suicide, it has been revealed, two years after the devastating death of his wife.
Alan Plummer had plans to go swimming with a friend on Sydney’s northern beaches at 6.30am on Sunday, but the father-of-three never showed up.
His friend called police to request a welfare check, after which officers arrived at Mr Plummer’s nearby home in the suburb of Freshwater to inform his 18-year-old daughter – who had been out on Saturday evening – that her father was missing .
The 49-year-old’s body was found an hour later by a lifeguard at the foot of a cliff at Freshwater Beach. Tragically, he is believed to have committed suicide.
“Officers from the Northern Beaches Police Area Command will prepare a report for the information of the coroner 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” as it followed the suicide of his Studio 10 hostess in May 2022.
The tragedy 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 in file image)
A source said Mr Plummer had only just sold the family’s four-bedroom home in September as he planned to move to Queensland with his youngest daughter.
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 only just completed her high school graduation and was attending a friend’s 18th birthday the night before her father’s body was found. it was celebrating.
The source said Mr Plummer had only just sold the family’s four-bedroom Freshwater home in September as he planned to move to Queensland with his youngest daughter to be closer to his middle child, who is with a sports scholarship at a school in the north.
The property, which was purchased by the Plummers in 2002 for $675,000, was initially listed for sale in March this year but was sold two months ago for an undisclosed sum before going to auction.
The tragedy has left the community in mourning, with locals devastated for the three young girls.
“They are good kids,” the source said. “Their parents have dozens of friends and the community comes together for them.”
Alan was the former director of a now defunct company called Shine VIP Tours Australia PTY LTD.
Another source revealed that he previously struggled with mental health and medical issues.
Erin Jayne Plummer was a beloved host of Studio 10 and was known for her roles in aerobics and advertorial TV shows
The couple married in the early 2000s and had three daughters
His wife Erin was only 42 when she died due to mental health issues. Her friends at the time said they wished they could have done more to “bear the weight of her pain.”
She was a doting mother and “loved her girls beyond bounds,” friends said, but was struggling during the Covid pandemic and had not been her “bouncy, energetic self” in the weeks before her death.
Erin’s father Peter described her daughters as her ‘little mini versions of her’, and at her funeral the presenter’s eldest child shared her grief at the loss of her beloved mother.
“Every day that goes by, I still can’t believe she’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 get over.’
After her death, a GoFundMe campaign was launched to help the Plummer family, raising more than $28,000.
Erin Jayne Plummer was a beloved host of Studio 10 and was known for her roles in aerobics and advertorial TV shows
‘Mum was loved by everyone. She was selfless and gave her all taking my sisters and me to 40 activities every week.
“She brought so much light into the world that we didn’t know her heart was in so much pain.”
The teen concluded the touching tribute: “Mom, I hope Heaven treats you better than any of us ever could. She is no longer ours, but we are hers forever.”
Erin’s youngest daughter also spoke, telling those in attendance, “My mom was the best person ever. I will always love you, dear mother.’
During her career as an advertorial host, she appeared on Studio 10, TVSN, Mornings with Kerri-Anne, and The Morning Show, and was nicknamed “The Danoz Girl.”
She also hosted Aerobics Oz Style for six years.
The educational aerobics TV 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 TV career, Erin was an accomplished synchronized swimmer who represented Australia at three world championships and won eleven national titles.
Erin was thrust into the spotlight at a young age when she was scouted at Manly Beach in Sydney and cast in a tourism campaign that aired on NBC in America.
But it was her role as a TV presenter for which she was best known. Over the years, she’s promoted everything from massage chairs and exercise programs to slimming jeans and steam mops.
When she wasn’t in front of the camera, Erin also did numerous voice-overs for TV.
After her death, a GoFundMe campaign was launched to help the Plummer family hire a gardener and housekeeper to “keep the household running” and raised nearly $28,000.
UK: For help and support, call the Samaritans free from a UK phone, completely anonymously, on 116 123 or visit samaritans.org
AU: For confidential support 24/7, call Lifeline 13 11 14 or Beyond 1300 22 4636