Staff at the Evening Echo in Essex have said goodbye to a journalist who has left the Basildon office after almost four decades.

Keith Bartels - known as Barty - retired after 36 years at the paper.

Barty joined the Echo in 1967 as a reporter. He worked his way up the ranks to chief reporter, deputy news editor, news editor and assistant editor.

He was a key player during the move to new technology, the brains behind the Newsquest Essex style guide and became an all-round troubleshooter, saving the paper from countless errors.

He plans to spend his retirement fishing and playing golf.

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