A man found slumped outside a pub with a fractured skull has given police new evidence after a glimmer of memory came back to him.

Timothy John, 42, gave police several clues to his attackers' identities after showing signs he was starting to recover from his injuries.

At first, police did not how Mr John had been injured and it was only when he managed to string together a few words that he was able to tell police he had been attacked.

Mr John's father Karl said his son was making steady progress and had managed to recall some more details, which he has passed on to police.

Mr John was discovered by friends outside the White Hart pub in Horsebridge.

They thought he had had too much to drink after watching the England v Germany football game on September 1 and took him to his Hailsham flat.

He was taken to his parents' house in Vicarage Lane, Hailsham, the following morning with friends and family still unaware of the extent of his injuries. But he collapsed in the bathroom and was taken to hospital.

Since then his condition has steadily improved according to his father.

Karl John said: "He is getting better. He is walking about having a cigarette but he still can't communicate properly.

"There will be rehabilitation but at the moment he is waiting to go back to Southampton neurological unit to have the blood clots on his brain removed.

"The operation sounds worse than it actually is. Any operation is not good news.

"He told the police he was in the pub when he was asked by three people to come outside because they wanted to show him something and then they attacked him. Some glimmer came back to him while the police were talking to him."

A spokesman for Sussex Police said it was too early to comment.

The victim's father is offering a reward for information leading to the conviction of the attackers. Anyone with information can call Eastbourne CID on 0845 6070999.