Bailey Joe Lister

Bailey Joe Lister was a 22 year old animal rescuer from Blackpool, Lancashire, who became known locally as the Dr Doolittle of animals for the small animal sanctuary he built from a stable block in the nearby village of Hambleton. He died in May 2026 after enduring a prolonged campaign of online abuse, a death that was later ruled a suicide by an assistant coroner.

Bailey grew up on Blackpool's North Shore, and his devotion to animals began in childhood, after he rescued a pet rat he named Hugo. That early act grew into a full time calling, and <cite index="1-7">the sanctuary was founded in 2018 by Bailey and his friend Lucie Anyon, when they were both 18 years old</cite>. The charity went on to take in unwanted rabbits, rodents and other small pets, and the sanctuary was rarely far from financial difficulty, so Bailey ran countless fundraising campaigns to keep it fed.

In the months before his death, Bailey's circumstances changed sharply after he was evicted from the Hambleton land his sanctuary occupied, and friends say this coincided with a surge of hostility against him online. <cite index="1-5">Those closest to Bailey insisted that the criticism escalated around the time when Bailey was evicted from land in Hambleton which he used to run his charity Hugo's Small Animal Sanctuary</cite>. <cite index="1-6">Lancashire Police have since confirmed that Bailey was not being investigated for any wrongdoing</cite> in connection with the events that triggered the backlash against him.

Bailey was found dead at the home he shared with a housemate. <cite index="2-6">On 7 May 2026, he was sadly found dead by his housemate at their home address</cite>. <cite index="2-5">He had a recent history of mental health issues and had experienced deteriorating mental health in the months prior to his death</cite>, the coroner later heard. News of his death prompted an immediate outpouring of grief across Blackpool and the Fylde coast, with Blackpool Tower lit up in his memory and hundreds of tributes posted online describing him as kind hearted and generous.

The community rallied quickly to support his family. <cite index="5-2">A GoFundMe page set up by Bailey Lister's family had already raised thousands of pounds towards its target to help cover his funeral expenses</cite> within days of his death. <cite index="4-2">The funeral service was held at Oakworth Crematorium on Friday 12 June, at 11.30am</cite>, and those who attended described it as a fitting send off for a young man who had given his life to helping vulnerable animals.

An inquest into Bailey's death concluded at Blackpool Town Hall in October 2026. <cite index="1-3">Assistant Coroner Louisa Rae called him a "gentleman" who lived with his housemate</cite>, and <cite index="1-4">the assistant coroner recorded a verdict of suicide</cite>. In the aftermath, Bailey's uncle, Luke Lister, has campaigned for change, and <cite index="6-1">the uncle of a kind hearted animal rescuer who was known fondly as the Dr Doolittle of animals who took his own life has launched a petition to put a stop to online bullying</cite>, a cause that has since become part of how Bailey is remembered, alongside the sanctuary he built and the animals he saved.