A former regional daily journalist described as a “wonderful storyteller” has died aged 80.

Tributes have been paid to Luke Casey, who began his career on the Northern Echo before going on to a number of roles with the BBC.

Luke, pictured, was also responsible for creating a purpose-built regional film and television archive at Teesside University.

He died at home surrounded by his wife, sons Adam and Daniel and daughters Fiona, Siobhan and Nuala, having suffered from Lewy Body dementia in recent years.

In a statement to the Darlington-based Echo, his family said: “For such a wonderful storyteller to be robbed of his beloved words was incredibly cruel.

“Although we are heartbroken, we are immensely proud of our lovely gentle father and husband.”

Luke was born in County Mayo, in Ireland, and emigrated to England aged 14.

Two years later, he landed his first job as a junior reporter at the Echo and worked at its Stockton-on-Tees district office. While there, he met his wife Mavis and the pair were together for 63 years.

Luke began working for BBC Look North in the 1960s and later moved to its Nationwide current affairs programme.

Although Nationwide was based in London, he continued to live in the North of England.

In 2002, he launched a project to create the regional film and television archive at Teesside University, in Middlesbrough.

The £800,000 development, funded by the UK Government, brought together TV and film footage spanning over 80 years.