A MAN drowned in Liverpool's Albert Dock yesterday after jumping into the freezing water as a stunt.

The 23-year-old, who has not been named, is thought to have been on a night out in the city with his girlfriend and two other friends when he jumped into the water around Atlantic Pavilion at 2.40am.

It is still unclear whether the couple were students at one of Liverpool's universities or whether they were simply visiting the city.

A Merseyside police spokesman said: "The early indications are that the young man was showing off to his girlfriend, or playing a prank, but we are still investigating the full circumstances.

"I can't recall any similar fatalities in the Albert Dock."

Emergency services were called to the scene shortly afterwards. An eyewitness, who did not wish to be named, said: "The police helicopter arrived and acted as a searchlight.

"The man had disappeared and his girlfriend didn't know whether he was in the water or just mucking about hiding behind a car. She was screaming her head off."

Divers from the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service spent 15 minutes looking for the man's body close to the Atlantic Pavilion before removing him from the water.

Paramedics pronounced him dead at 3.47am, and all the emergency services had left the scene by 4am.

The man was from Stoke on Trent and his girlfriend is believed to be from Manchester.

The police spokesman said: "We are waiting until we can contact the man's relatives before releasing his name." The man's mother is believed to be on holiday in Antigua, in the Caribbean.

Although there is no current in the dock, the water is between 15 and 18ft deep.

The area around Atlantic Pavilion is a popular destination for clubbers and visitors to the city.

It has several restaurants, bars and nightclubs including Baby Cream, Blue Bar and the Pan American Club.

Albert Dock's water was famously used by Granada for filming ITV's daytime magazine programme This Morning.

Until the show moved to London five years ago, weatherman Fred Talbot broadcast his reports standing on a floating map of the United Kingdom, jumping from England to Northern Ireland.

But the map is no longer at Albert Dock and it is unlikely the man was attempting a copycat stunt. The coroner has opened an inquest.

adrianbutler@dailypost.co.uk