Magazine editor Simon Hoffman died nine days after suffering serious head injuries in a collision with a motorcyclist.

Mr Hoffman, 37, of Freshfield Road, Brighton, was in collision with the motorcyclist as he crossed Eastern Road, Brighton, on Monday, October 29.

Both men were seriously injured and taken to the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Eastern Road where Mr Hoffman was transferred to the intensive care unit.

After a few days he was transferred to intensive care at a neurological unit at a hospital in Romford, Essex.

He died there on Wednesday surrounded by his family.

Mr Hoffman, who was brought up in Old Coulsden, Surrey, where his parents still live, began his career as a journalist in 1985. He became editor of Fire Magazine, based in Redhill, Surrey, which is circulated among fire services and deals with fire prevention.

His career took him all around the world and he was interviewed on BBC's Newsnight in 1992 when a blaze tore through Windsor Castle. He also appeared on the TV show 999, presented by Michael Burke.

He worked on the magazine for 15 years before moving to another media company based in Tonbridge, Kent.

In the summer of 2000, Mr Hoffman moved to Brighton from Copthorne, near Crawley.

Mr Hoffman was the youngest of three brothers who are all devastated by his death.

Colin Hoffman, 42, the middle brother, of Redhill, Surrey, said: "He was a very kind, caring and gentle person, not aggressive or brash or rude. He was a sweet caring guy who was extremely popular and we miss him very much.

"My family are devastated. We're choked."

He said his brother had tried his hand at a number of jobs before showing his journalistic flair: "His bent was English and while he was working at the Fire Magazine he did an Open University degree in English."

Colin Hoffman has appealed for any witnesses to the accident to come forward. He said: "We have a lot of questions in our minds. We never really knew what happened."

A post-mortem examination is expected to be held next week and Mr Hoffman's funeral will be held in Old Coulsden.

An inquest into his death will take place at a later date.

Traffic officers at Shoreham are investigating the accident. Sergeant Clive Mead said: "We would like to hear from anyone who witnessed the accident."

Anyone with any information should call police on 0845 6070999.

The 41-year-old motorcyclist has been released from hospital.