A 19-YEAR-OLD student told yesterday how a fun night out ended in tragedy when his friend plunged 70ft to his death.

Stuggling to come to terms with the death of Matthew Egglestone, James Gray said: "He was my best friend."

Solicitor's clerk Matthew, 18, was killed when he crashed 70ft from a public stairwell on to concrete, while taking a shortcut during a night out.

The tragedy happened as he, James and Ross Hutcheson took a shortcut up George Stairs, off Newcastle's Dean Street, in the early hours of Tuesday.

When they reached the top, they came to a metal barrier blocking the path.

Tragically, Matthew tried to edge around it but lost his footing and plunged to a car park below Cale Cross House.

James said: "We never would have gone up the stairs if we had known they were shut at the top."

At the family home in Falstone, Washington, Wearside, Matthew's father Ian, said: "He was our only son and a good one. He was kind, generous and happy-go-lucky. He never did anything wrong."

A Newcastle City Council spokesman said an investigation was under way to see if it had been informed by Railtrack about the stairs' closure.