A respected photojournalist who worked in his local area for more than half a century has died after a seven-year cancer battle.

Mike Charity, left, took thousands of photographs for newspapers and magazines in the Gloucestershire area and also worked as a TV news cameraman.

Originally from Hereford, he set up a small freelance photographic agency in Cheltenham in 1962 which supplied a photo service to Fleet Street newspapers and magazines as well as film footage for regional and national news stations.

Mike became well known in the industry and was known as Charity of Cheltenham in Fleet Street.

Among those paying tribute to Mike was Gloucester Citizen and Gloucestershire Echo photographer Rob Davis.

He said: “Mike was a master of his craft and a great champion for photojournalism. He had a skill with the written word to match his expertise with the camera. He lived and breathed news photography.

“He had a great sense of humour and you were always guaranteed a laugh if you met him on an assignment. He had a charm which helped to get the best out his subjects.

“He never looked down on people and always treated them as an equal. To me he was the ‘governor’ and a man to look up to. He was a legend who will be missed by all.”

Wife Gilly said: “Mike took thousands of images in his career, covering a vast array of subjects, pop stars, film stars, the Royal Family, race meetings, natural disasters, war-torn areas and local events.

“His work took him throughout the UK, Europe, Asia and Africa, at times covering trouble spots such as Borneo, Aden, Ireland and Romania.”

However she said that more recently Mike had given up hard news filming and instead concentrated on “the more peaceful life of the magazine world.”

He also published three books, one of which was about days of standing around Cromwell Street in Gloucester as the Fred West drama unfolded in the town.

Mike is survived by his wife, Gilly, and son Dan. His funeral will be at 1pm on Monday November 30 at Cheltenham Crematorium.