Tributes have been paid after the death of a prolific Letchworth designer who had a hand in designing a host of 1970s creations including the Raleigh Chopper, the Popemobile and Luke Skywalker's Star Wars' Landspeeder.

Tom Karen adied aged 96 on New Year's Eve surrounded by his family.

Mr Karen, who was appointed OBE in 2019, was the managing director of Letchworth's Ogle Design from 1962 until 1999.

Philip Martin, Director at Ogle Models and Prototypes, said: "The Ogle family is deeply saddened to learn of Tom's death. He was an exceptionally talented designer and a very special man.

 "He was such an integral part of the Ogle success story. He pioneered so much of the work that we continue to do today, overseeing our progress from automotive designs, through the thrill of Star Wars and into aerospace.

 "The company owes him a great debt of gratitude."

The industrial designer was born in Vienna, Austria, and arrived in England in 1942 during World War Two..

In the statement confirming Mr Karen's death, Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation - which runs the town's Museum at One Garden City - said he had overseen some of the UK's most iconic designs.

Mr Karen played an instrumental role in designing the Raleigh Chopper bike with his 1968 sketches of the iconic design - that was to sell 1.5 million bikes - have been stored in the archive of the Victoria & Albert Museum.

The legendary icon also helped design the Reliant Scimitar car, the Reliant Bond Bug - a two-seater, three-wheeled sports car that was launched at Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire in 1970 - and Leyland lorry cabs.

The Bond Bug's unusual chassis formed the base of Luke Skywalker's landspeeder in Star Wars, while Ogle Design's association with Leyland resulted in Mr Karen designing one of the Popemobiles after the lorry firm was commissioned to manufacture them.

Nub News has been featuring Mr Karen's exhibition called Creations in our What's On section at Museum at One Garden City