Astronomer George Hole was so little known when he died that he did not even merit an obituary.

However, from the garden of his modest home in Patcham, Brighton, Mr Hole helped bring the wonders of outer space into people's living rooms 40 years ago.

He took magnificent pictures of the moon long before men first walked on its surface back in 1969.

Now Mike Feist, himself an astronomer at Foredown Tower in Portslade, says Brighton and indeed Britain should do more to recognise Mr Hole's achievements.

He was the typical inspired enthusiast, able to build for a few pounds a telescope that competed with the best in the world.

It would be a shame if the work of this able astronomer disappeared for ever into a black hole.