A MOONLIGHT skinny dip ended in tragedy when a 33-year-old man drowned in the icy waters of a reservoir, an inquest was told.

An inquest heard that Mitchell Lee Bury disappeared without a sound as he and two friends swam the 250 yards across the water.

And another pal revealed that he had refused to join the swim because of signs warning of the dangers.

Mitchell, of Nuttall Street, Blackburn, had met up with five friends at the end of a night out in Blackburn in July. They had gone looking for a party at Pickup Bank and then decided to stay up and watch the sun rise.

The friends had driven to Wayho Reservoir near Entwistle where they sat on a sandy part of the bank drinking beer and talking.

Jason Mellray, of Greenbank Terrace, Lower Darwen, told the inquest it had ben his suggestion to go for a swim and that Mitchell had been enthusiastic.

He said he stripped down to his boxer shorts and waded into the water, where he was joined by Jason and Kerry Thwaites, of Devonshire Drive, Clayton-le-Moors, and the three of them set off to swim to the opposite bank.

Jason said the crossing was further than he had at first thought but he had looked for and seen both Mitchell and Kerry when they were about three quarters of the way across.

"When we got to the other side I couldn't see Mitch," said Jason. "I shouted for him and walked towards the road and then swam back in about the same place he had been swimming."

Meanwhile the friends who had not made the swim had joined the search and two of them set off to raise the alarm when they were unable to get signals on their mobile phones.

Jason and Kerry swam back across the reservoir which Jason said was between 200 and 300m across.

Asked by coroner Michael Singleton if he knew if Mitchell was a good swimmer Jason said he had no idea of his capability.

"When I suggested the swim I thought it had passed by but I looked round and Mitch was in the water saying, are you up for this swim or what," he said.

Jay Homer, of Greenbank, Lower Darwen, said he was driving on the night and had not been drinking. He remembered somebody suggested they go skinny dipping but he had refused.

"I said no because there was a big sign saying DANGER NO SWIMMING," said Jay. "I said that out loud so they knew it was dangerous."

A post mortem report gave the medical cause of death as drowning and revealed an alcohol level over double the legal drink drive limit.

Recording a verdict of accidental death coroner Michael Singleton said it had been a tragic and unnecessary loss of a young life.

"It doesn't need me to say, with the benefit of hindsight, how foolish he was," said Mr Singleton.