A MAN accused of killing his baby, girlfriend and her mum was full of hopes for their future the night before a fire tore through their home, his friend told a court.

Kevin Hill, has known Carl Mills, 28, for the past seven years.

The pair spoke on the phone twice on the night before a fire ripped through 15 Tillsland, Coed Eva, Cwmbran, on September 18 last year, killing Kim Buckley, 46, her daughter Kayleigh, 17, and six-month-old granddaughter Kimberley.

He said Mills had been drinking Lambrini wine and sounded "half cut" as they spoke first around 8pm and again at 10.47pm.

But he said he sounded normal and was not aggressive in any way.

He mentioned he planned to marry Kayleigh and wanted them to move into a social housing home.

He also mentioned his daughter, Kimberley, and said she had just come home from hospital and was on oxygen to help her breathe.

Mr Hill said Mills was texting Kayleigh as they spoke on the phone and called her a "b****" but was laughing about it, Newport Crown Court heard.

Mr Hill said he knew Mills, of no fixed abode, did not get on with Kim Buckley, probably because she was protective of her daughter and did not approved of his alcohol addiction, he said.

Mills and Kayleigh often argued and he would often refer to Kim Buckley as a "cow" or a "b****" because he felt she was interfering in the relationship, the jury was told.

But his friend said he was looking forward to the future and wanted to get help for his alcohol abuse.

He described Mills as "happy-go-lucky" and said he was "we'll liked believe it or not."

He said he was a nice person he was shy when sober but became "quite boisterous" when he had a drink.