Dan Barrett

The journalist Dan Barrett, who has died aged 55 after a six-month battle against cancer, was a widely experienced and highly professional Fleet Street sub-editor, accustomed to working under pressure with precision, flair, calmness and good humour.

A big man - he was a boxing champion in his youth - he had the gentlest of natures, and was widely liked and respected on the Guardian, where he had given valued service for six years, the last five of them on the sub-editors' desk in the financial department. His accountancy qualifications saved the paper from some mathematical blunders.

Dan's extensive national newspaper experience meant that he was unfazed by the most daunting of tasks, and was particularly adept at working swiftly and accurately against the clock to meet edition deadlines. When he was in charge of production late at night, the section was safe in his hands.

He had faced his illness with characteristic grit and determination, keeping remarkably cheerful to the end. When colleagues gave him a lunch, knowing the dreadful prognosis, it was Dan who took the lead in making the occasion light-hearted and enjoyable.

With his two sisters and two brothers, Dan had a hard start in life. He was born in a prefab in Nunhead, south London, and the family found it difficult to make ends meet. Dan set his sights on a good education, and won a scholarship to St Joseph's Academy in Blackheath, leaving at 16 to teach English to schoolboys in Lisle, France.

On his return to England, he began working in the trade press, before breaking into national newspapers. He had a varied Fleet Street career - the titles he worked for included the Sun, Today, the Daily Mail, the Daily Express and the Times. For 14 years, he was a key player on Saturdays at the Sunday Times. He joined the Guardian in 1997.

His wife, Brenda, died in 2000, and he is survived by his son Paul, his sisters Mary and Maureen, and his brothers Michael and John.

· Daniel Barrett, journalist, born July 24 1947; died December 28 2002