Mylee Billingham: Father accused of stabbing her to death 'had just been made redundant'

The father accused of stabbing his eight-year-old daughter to death had just been made redundant, friends have said.

Bill Billingham, 54, is said to have undergone surgery and is fighting for his life after he was found with stab wounds at the home where his daughter Mylee had been murdered.

He had separated from her mother, Tracey Taundry, 33, several years ago, friends claimed, but it was said that he had recently lost his job as a factory worker.

Miss Taundry was being comforted by family after finding her daughter covered in blood at the house in Walsall, West Mids on Saturday.

A family member said that she was “too shell shocked” to talk about what had happened.

Mr Billingham - whose brother Mark is an instructor on the Channel 4 TV show SAS: Who Dares Wins and has acted as a bodyguard for Brad Pitt – has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.

He had posted a picture of her smiling in bed eating pizza just an hour before he allegedly stabbed her to death.

His Facebook posts show that he doted on his daughter, whom he called “moo”, and he frequently said that she would be a “star” with her singing.

The week before she was stabbed and killed, he posted a picture of her beaming after a Young Voices concert, a company which runs concerts for talented children to sing at.

Mr Billingham also spoke of how he was getting his daughter a karaoke set. Posting a video of Sonny and Cher singing "I Got You Babe", he wrote: "Me an' moo when I set her karaoke up she will be a star!”

Friends had said that he had just been made red​undant from a factory job.  He and Miss Taundry had separated some time before he moved into the one-bedroom flat in the Brownhills area of the city where Mylee was found dead on Saturday night after neighbours allegedly heard screams.

A family friend, who asked not to be named, said: "Bill and Tracy have lived apart for a few years now - they’ve been broken up for a while so it’s not anything too recent.

"They had been together and lived apart before, but this time I think they hadn’t been together for a year or two.

"They seemed to still get on well.

"He looked after the kids and always seemed like a loving father and a family man, so it’s just so out of character - I can’t believe what’s happened.

"He seemed like such a doting father and a hard worker. I don’t know if he was depressed or anything like that.

"She just was such a lovely little girl - I don’t understand how this could happen.”

Floral tributes have been left outside the home, with one note reading: "Mylee, our superstar dancer, you will be the brightest star shining in the sky tonight. We will never forget your happy, smiling face. Fly high xxxx."