A MAN who had taken cocaine and had twice the legal alcohol limit in his blood died after his speeding car ploughed into the back of a lorry near Swindon.

Mark Smith drove at an average speed of 115mph along the M4 after visiting a nightclub in Bristol.

An inquest heard he had decided to drive back to his home in Uxbridge, but lost control of his Vauxhall Calibra between Junction 15 and Membury.

HGV driver Michael Howe, of Patchway in Bristol, described how he was driving at 50mph towards London in his lorry when he felt a "bang".

When he stopped and investigated, he saw flames coming from the back of his trailer. At first he thought it was a wheel fire, he said. But further investigation revealed the a Vauxhall Calibra was lodged underneath the trailer.

Mr Smith, 26, is thought to have died instantly in the smash on October 2 last year, in which fire wrecked both vehicles. He was identified by his watch.

Police established his average speed would have been 115mph, after leaving Bristol at 3.30am and arriving at the scene of the crash at 3.54am.

Toxicology reports indicated that he had 186 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood. The limit is 80.

Wiltshire coroner David Masters said tests on Mr Smith's body revealed traces of cocaine. Extending his sympathies to Mr Smith's family, the coroner said: "It flags up once again that that level of alcohol is such a hazardous risk to the driver, as well as other road users."