Former northern editor of The Sunday World, Jim McDowell, who has died, has been praised as one of the bravest reporters of The Troubles.

Belfast-born McDowell, who started his career in the Belfast News Letter, was frequently threatened during a 50-year-long career for his coverage of paramilitaries on all sides of the conflict and the actions of drug dealers, who once beat him savagely.

Aged 76, McDowell, who suffered heart trouble in later years, is survived by his wife Lindy, daughter Faye and sons Jamie and Micah.

He campaigned for decades for justice for his murdered Sunday World colleague, Martin O’Hagan, who was murdered by the Loyalist Volunteer Force in 2001.

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Long-standing colleague Brian Rowan said McDowell was “a legend” during years when journalists were frequently threatened: “He stood his ground. He was hard as nails. He fought with people and he fought for people.”