A journalist whose stories put his patch “on the map” as a fishing destination has died in Thailand aged 68.

Tributes have been paid to Paul Whittall, who wrote fishing articles for the Dorset Echo.

Paul, pictured, was a charter boat captain by trade in addition to his freelance writing work.

He passed away in Thailand, where he had lived in recent years, but a memorial service is due to be held in Weymouth next month.

Paul’s son Tom told the Echo: “I just express my respect for what dad has done for Weymouth as a whole, the fishing and angling side by writing reports in the Echo and Angling Times – stories which put Weymouth on the map as a popular fishing and angling destination and by pushing the boundaries.

“The charter boats all used to be wooden warriors and now Weymouth has the most impressive fleet of charter boats that are state of the art, on the south coast. That’s all because dad pushed it on.”