Graham Birdsall, a world authority on UFOs, died aged 49 in St James's Hospital, Leeds, last September from a brain haemorrhage after he was taken ill at his home in Colton, east Leeds. He left a wife and three daughters.
With younger brother Mark h
e founded in the early 1980s the news stand magazine empire, based at Stourton in south Leeds, which published UFO Magazine.
The magazine went on to become the world's best-selling UFO publication, with a readership measured in the tens of thousands. It also staged an annual conference in Leeds.
Mr Birdsall became fascinated by UFOs in 1967 when as a boy he saw a strange object in the sky from the garden of his home in Leeds.
He travelled the world lecturing on the subject to enthusiasts and frequently appeared on TV to discuss the latest sightings.
The family continued to publish the magazine after his death with help from his son-in-law Russell Callaghan, who took over as editor.
But yesterday Mr Birdsall's widow Christine announced that the latest issue of the magazine, produced by Quest Publications International Ltd, would be the last.
