POPULAR radio presenter and writer Brian Tansley has died.
Mr Tansley, of West Bridgford, worked for BBC Radio Nottingham and Radio Trent during his career in broadcasting.
Latterly, he had written for the Nottingham Post, producing regular pieces for our Bygones section.
Mr Tansley had suffered from an illness and died at Queen's Medical Centre at 11.45am yesterday. He was 61.
His friend Vince Eager said: "I am very saddened by this. He will be sorely missed by everyone who knew him.
"I had known him for many years. I went off to America for around 14 years and when I came back he came to see me straight away.
"He was a really good guy and was great at what he did. He researched what he did thoroughly. He always believed in doing that.
"He was a great believer that if you were going to do something, you should do it right and give it everything you can."
Mr Tansley didn't have any children. His elderly parents live in Weston-super-Mare.
He trained as a journalist when he left school in 1967 and contributed cricket and football reports to the fledgling BBC Radio Nottingham from July 1968.
He eventually became sports editor at Radio Trent, concentrating on Notts County, before switching to nightly music presentation and later becoming a presenter on BBC Radio Nottingham's Afternoon Show.
In 2003, he joined Ruddington company The Media Group, filming, writing and designing magazines for such clients as the Football Association.
He also contributed cricket reports for television on Sky Sports News and more recently he had been presenting on local radio station Solid Gold Gem.
Fellow Bygones writer and former Post journalist Andy Smart also paid tribute to Mr Tansley.
He said: "I first met Brian in the early 1970s when I was doing football reports on Mansfield Town for Radio Trent and he became a good friend over the years.
"He was always very professional with great interests in football and rock and roll, particularly The Shadows.
"He will be sadly missed by people across the city."
Staff at Solid Gold Gem yesterday e-mailed the Post to express their sorrow and turned their Facebook page black as a tribute to him.
Len Groat, speaking on behalf of the station, said: "Brian Tansley was truly a one-off.
"Brian needed little guidance, he was so enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the music and his audience that all he needed was occasional praise, which he always modestly accepted.
"We were proud to work alongside Brian once again on our internet station.
"All of his radio colleagues from over the decades will miss him, and particularly his friends and colleagues here."
