Sudden death of Pop Idol star Darius Campbell Danesh is ruled an accident by US coroner

Danesh died from “inhalation of chloroethane”, the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner's Office in the United States has said.

Autopsy documents obtained by the PA news agency listed “toxic effects of chloroethane” and “suffocation” as contributing factors to his death.

His death was ruled an accident by the medical examiner.

The singer and actor - who shot to fame on the reality TV show - was found dead in his US apartment last month at the age of 41.

A statement previously released by his family had said investigators found “no signs of intent or suspicious circumstances”.

The Scottish singer was found dead in his apartment in Minnesota on August 11.

The star forged a showbiz career after finishing third in Pop Idol - behind Will Young and Gareth Gates - in the early noughties.

He went on to become a star in musical theatre, appearing in musicals like Chicago and Guys and Dolls.

His previous hit single Colourblind re-entered the charts following his death.

Darius Campbell Danesh was known as Darius Danesh when he made his first bid for fame in ITV show Popstars in 2001 and also appeared on the first Pop Idol, which was won by Will Young.

After Pop Idol, Danesh turned down Simon Cowell's offer of a record deal and signed with producer Steve Lillywhite, whose credits include U2 and the Rolling Stones.

In 2011, speaking about reprising the role of scheming lawyer Flynn in 'Chicago', he said he had based his portrayal of the character on his old mentor and Pop Idol judge, Mr Cowell.

He said: "He's the consummate businessman and a wonderful guy and there's a lot of Simon Cowell in Billy Flynn in terms of the way he approaches things and I recognise that in terms of the character."

He credited Mr Cowell with persuading him to take on the role in Chicago in the first place.

He said: "I'm incredibly grateful for the experiences I've had and all the opportunities that it opened up and to be able to call Simon Cowell a friend and to be able to have dinner with him."