TRIBUTES have been paid after a 28-year-old motorcyclist was killed in an accident.

Sebastian Grootz from Didcot has been hailed as a popular local and a “real character” by friends.

The former pupil at St Birinus School died on Monday when riding his Suzuki motorbike in Drayton south of Abingdon.

He left the road and hit a telegraph pole at about 2.10pm.

He was rushed to the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford but died shortly after.

Now a string of messages praising his character and mourning his loss have been posted on Facebook.

Phil Gill wrote: “Sebastian Grootz - one of the only people who was genuinely always positive. “Every time I bumped into this guy I got something out of it. A properly funny and kind bloke who was a real character in Didcot. Absolute legend, truly. RIP mate. A big loss. Thoughts to your family.”

Peter Kidd wrote: “We only knew Seb through our time at The Fox (a pub in Didcot). “Seb always brightened the pub merely by walking in. Such a sad loss of such a nice guy and way, way too young. Thanks for all the fun, Seb. Won't forget you."

Kate Brady wrote: “When anyone thinks of Seb, they have some sort of funny story to tell. Can we try to share a few smiles to break up the tears?’’ On his Facebook profile, he said he was in a relationship with former Didcot Girls School student Emily Hardiman.

On Tuesday night she wrote on the website: “To be honest, living with Seb, we were peeing ourselves about something most days. “One memory which makes me laugh is when he tried to grow a moustache for Movember but was really struggling, so he got me to put mascara in it and went to work like it. I’m sure he would love me sharing this.”

Other comments mention his travels in places such as New Zealand and his work at Dominos.