A wife has paid tribute to her husband, a business owner from High Wycombe, after he died from cancer last month.

June Eyres, 65, said husband Brian, 68, was a “great, big, strong, dependable man” who would constantly tease his loved ones and those around him.

The couple met when they were teenagers – June was 16 and Brian was 18 – and have lived in High Wycombe for 47 years, running Garage Doors Central (HW) Limited in Terryfield Road.

Brian, who was born just outside Marlow, was a carpenter, fixing up the couple’s home over the years, with June saying she never needed to call a plumber, builder or electrician because Brian did it all.

She said: “He was a man’s man and a perfectionist.

“By the end he had done everything, he could do no more.”

Brian was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a type of cancer that commonly starts in the layers of tissue that cover each lung, last October, and died on April 27 this year.

According to Cancer Research, around five times more men than women get mesothelioma as it is often caused by asbestos at work – which is how Brian contracted it.

June said Brian was a doting father to their son Jason and three grandchildren, and enjoyed fishing and gardening in his spare time.

She said: “He loved his garden. It was immaculate.

“He also enjoyed being with his grandchildren. He absolutely adored them.

“He never would have retired, he loved his work so much.”

June added that once Brian knew he was dying, he told June how to look after the garden and sorted out the finances.

She said: “The week before he died he made me book a holiday for Christmas for me and my sister [Joy].

“Once he knew I was financially sound he was happy. It was a testament to the man he was.”

Brian was taken to the Sue Ryder Hospice, where he passed away peacefully a few hours after he arrived.

June said: “It was hard caring for him – someone who was always such a big, brave man.

“He was in so much pain but he never complained.

“[The hospice] was a beautiful place. The day he died the birds were singing and there were deer playing on the lawns.

“He wanted to see his grandson and he did.

“That morning he squeezed my hand so hard it left a mark. He will be missed.”

*Garage Doors Central (HW) Ltd will continue to stay in business. Visit www.gdcentral.co.uk for more.