A PUBLISHER has done what Doc Ock and the Green Goblin could only dream of - killing off Spider-Man.

And a fanatical three-year-old Spidey fan from Poole is among those who are devastated after his favourite magazine was cancelled without explanation.

Kat Mitchell, of Kitchener Crescent in Poole, told how her son Conner is an avid collector of the fortnightly Spider-Man Tower of Power magazine, which includes stories, puzzles and cards, as well as a special kit to build a tower block.

The 28-year-old explained how she found a note saying the comic has been cancelled inside the last edition of the magazine, but when she approached its publisher the company was unable to give her any explanation for why it has been stopped.

"The note read due to unforeseen circumstances we have been forced to suspend publication of the series until further notice'," she said.

"I have tried to explain this to my boy, but he doesn't really understand at the moment. He's too young. It's heartbreaking because he keeps telling everyone how much he loves it. He's going to be very upset when he finally understands there aren't going to be any more.

"I understand these things happen, and the publishers did apologise, but they haven't given me any explanation. It's so frustrating."

A spokesman from Eaglemoss Publications said: "Spider-Man Tower of Power had been planned to be one of our major launches of the year. Unfortunately there simply wasn't enough demand for this title to make it economically viable, and we have had to make the decision to stop publication.

"We do apologise for this, and have taken the step of placing a notice in copies of the final issue offering a full refund to all customers."