Tony De Vit died from bronchial pneumonia and bone marrow failure in Birmingham's Heartlands Hospital after being taken ill in the United States.

The 40-year-old DJ, ranked fifth in DJ Magazine's survey of the world's top 10, made his name on the dance floor.

He also worked with top names, remixing their tracks.

His work gave him top billing at clubs such as London's Trade and Ministry Of Sound, as well as Liverpool's Cream and Birmingham's Miss Moneypenny's.

De Vit also had three top 40 hits with Burning Up, Hooked and I'll Be There in 1995 and 1996.

He was also well-known as a celebrity remixer for various dance compilation albums as well as working as a DJ for London's Kiss FM.

History of illness

The club star collapsed in Miami recently and was thought to be suffering from exhaustion and fatigue after an acute case of food poisoning.

He suffered a relapse on his return to Britain and tests carried out in the past few days showed the extent of his illness.

He died in Birmingham with his long-time friend and personal assistant Andrew Bird at his bedside.

A spokesman for De Vit, Gerard Franklin, said: "We are all just completely devastated.

"We thought Tony was on the mend after his recent collapse, he seemed to be making good progress, but four days ago he suffered a relapse and was taken into hospital.

"The doctors realised that his illness was far more serious and conducted further tests which revealed the bronchial pneumonia."

'Incredible loss'

The DJ's manager, Kay Mastersen, added: "He was dearly loved by clubbers throughout the world and the dance music industry and his death is an incredible loss to us all."

Tony de Vit began DJing at the age of 17 but it was only in the last four years that he earned his reputation.

Before he pursued his musical career he worked in stock control and then as a computer programmer.