Lynne Stevens spoke of how she will sorely miss her ex-partner Bill Wickham, and of her fears for the impact his death will have on their nine-year-old boy Louis Wickham.

Mr Wickham, 44, was killed on Monday night after an assault left him with a deep gash in the back of his neck.

'He's a brave little lad, he really is the model of his father,' she said. I said to him this morning "you've just got to remember the good times", but he's very quiet at the moment. I think he's in shock.

'I don't think it has really sunk in yet, but when it does he will miss his dad very, very much.'

Mr Wickham, of Hammond Court, South Street, Gosport, was killed on Sunday evening in the grounds of Holy Trinity Church, Gosport.

He used to work as a trawler fisherman when he was in a relationship with Mrs Stevens but was unemployed when he died.

Mrs Stevens said: 'He loved Louis and he loved fishing, those were his two main loves in life.

'When he took Louis out, he was a fantastic dad, he did things that other dads just wouldn't do.

'He took his son fishing a lot and took him to play on the common, taught him how to ride his bike - he did all he could for him.

'He loved his son more than anything else in the world and the time he spent with him was like time Louis had with no other person. When it came to that side of things, he was fantastic.'

The couple were together for five years and Mr Wickham was also a stepfather to Jobe Glover, 14, Mrs Stevens's son from a previous relationship.

They lived together in Ireland, then moved to Old Road, Gosport, but separated about eight years ago.

Mrs Stevens, 38, an art student from Fareham, said: 'I felt pretty numb when I found out what had happened.

'We would always have a laugh together once we put our troubles aside, but he was a troubled man and an alcoholic.'

rob.dabrowski

@thenews.co.uk