PETER BIRKETT, a former Kent Messenger Group journalist who made his name as foreign editor of the Daily Mail during the first Gulf War, has died at the age of 60. He suffered a brain tumour.

During his career Mr Birkett worked for several national newspapers and made many friends both inside and outside the profession.

He began his career as a reporter at the Kent Messenger’s Sittingbourne office during the 1960s and at the time lived in the village of Borden.

But London soon beckoned, and during the 1970s he worked as a reporter on the Daily Mail, before becoming the foreign editor of the same title - a position he held from August 1988 to May 1993.

During his career he also worked for the Daily Sketch and was also the editor of the Daily Telegraph’s Peterborough Diaries, which was later rebranded the London Spy.

He lived in Caring Lane, Leeds, near Maidstone, before moving to Deal.

Foreign editor of the Daily Mail, Gerry Hunt, who was Mr Birkett’s deputy during the early 1990s, said: "He was a good chap and really good fun to work with. Popular with all the staff.

"During his time as foreign editor of the Mail, the major thing was the Gulf War. He also worked over in Northern Ireland for a while. He was a real professional."

Philip Mellor, from Meopham, near Gravesend, who works for the Sunday Mirror, had known Mr Birkett for some 30 years.

He said: "I first met him in 1970 on the Daily Sketch, which is now defunct. He was the ultimate professional. He worked hard and played hard. I remember spending two weeks with him in Lewes in east Sussex when Lord Lucan disappeared and it involved a lot of walking along the South Downs and a lot of going into pubs.

"He’d always help a colleague out and would always have a quip ready for any occasion. He was good fun."