Former Hampshire Chronicle journalist Nick Light has died.

He started his career with the Chronicle in 1958 before being snapped up by the News of the World and the Mail on Sunday.

In 1987 he returned to Hampshire to become the county council’s senior press officer where he worked until his retirement in 1997, after which he moved to the Isle of Wight.

Nick, (69), battled for years with cancer and at one stage was left paralysed by the disease.

His daughter Emily Dickson said: “Above being a journalist, he was able to engage with anyone, irrespective of their age or background and people instinctively trusted him.

“He made people laugh with his stories and dry sense of humour.

“He recovered from years of treatment for cancer, when doctors didn’t expect him to survive, from being paralysed from the neck down to learning to walk again.

“He was determined to survive to see his young children grow up and he achieved this and died knowing they are happy and settled with their own homes, careers and families.”