HE made waves around the world by becoming Britain’s oldest emigrant.

But nearly two years after leaving Hampshire for New Zealand at the grand old age of 103, Eric King-Turner has died.

Eric and his wife Doris, who was 87 at the time, made headlines across the globe when they set sail on a luxury cruise from Southampton to start a new life in New Zealand.

After the Daily Echo broke the story, the pair, with a combined age of 189, arrived in Wellington to a tickertape welcome.

From then on Eric became a celebrity in his adopted country and was famous for his love of fly-fishing.

But he suffered a stroke at his South Island home and died in hospital on Sunday aged 104.

New Zealand-born Doris, now 90, called her husband a “thorough English gentleman”.

She said: “He only managed to get his new fishing licence last week. He intended to go fishing in the Motueka River as soon as we got a nice, fine day. Only that was no longer to be.”

The duo, who were both widowed, swapped their retirement flat in Titchfield for a bungalow overlooking Tasman Bay. It took them five months of paperwork before they settled in the South Island.

When they set foot on New Zealand soil in 2008, Eric – a former Royal Navy serviceman and dentist – had entered the record books as the country’s oldest immigrant and Britain’s oldest emigrant.

He later attributed his old age to his family’s history of longevity, a good balanced diet with plenty of vegetables, and a tot of gin a day.

Though he said he missed some aspects of his homeland, he said he had no regrets about moving 12,000 miles for a new life.

Doris, who married Eric in New Zealand 13 years ago, added: “He liked the climate, particularly Nelson, the country and the people.

“ H e was a very lovely-hearted man. He enjoyed life and made the most of it. We were very happy.”

A funeral service took place at a church near Nelson at 2pm New Zealand time – 2am GMT – today.