Obituary: Philip Beer

The 22-year-old was with his friend Patrick Barnes on the bombed tube

It was a measure of Phil Beer's outgoing personality that his family asked all mourners at his funeral to wear brightly coloured clothes.

His many friends fulfilled this request in flamboyant fashion and his body was carried into the crematorium in a pink coffin.

The service included the release of 22 white doves, one for each year of his life.

The hair stylist from Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, made an impression on all who met him with his fun-loving character, amplified by his brightly-coloured hair and lip stud.

He dreamed of becoming a well-known hairdresser and travelling the world.

On the morning of 7 July 2005, he and his friend Patrick Barnes, 22, boarded the Tube at King's Cross on the Piccadilly Line.

Mr Beer was on his way to work at a salon in Knightsbridge but a bomb went off moments after the train pulled out of the station.

At the inquest, Peter Taylor, one of the first paramedics on the scene, said leaving Mr Beer, who called out for help as he made his way through the carriage but later stopped breathing, was the "hardest decision I have ever had to make".

His close friend Mr Barnes survived the blast. During the inquest, it emerged that some of Mr Beer's last words included reassuring Mr Barnes that he was not going to die.

Mr Beer's sister, Stacy, then 24, had taken the men to Borehamwood station and when she heard about the bombs she sent a text message to Mr Barnes to make sure the pair were all right.

A distressed phone call followed and Mr Barnes told her he had lost sight of her brother in the aftermath of the blast.

Family and friends searched hospitals until they received confirmation of their worst fears three days after the attacks.

Mr Beer lived with his parents Kim and Phil and his four sisters, Michelle, then 25, Stacy, Angelina, 15 and one-year-old Lilymay.

In a statement read out at the inquest five years after his death, Stacy Beer said: "Our lives seem quiet and empty since Phil has gone.

"There is always a dark shadow over our family, as a huge part of our family is always missing.

"When our family share happy occasions, there is always a constant reminder that Phil is not here to share them with us, such as the birth of my first baby.

"We suffer every day with the pain of losing our little brother in such a horrific way, but we also have to watch our parents suffer, as they are unable to come to terms with losing their only son, a piece of them died the day Philip was taken from our family."

Since leaving school, Mr Beer worked in several salons, including John Frieda and Alberto Gianni.

His colleagues at Sanrizz in Knightsbridge, where he had been for just over a week, described Mr Beer as "a born entertainer" who "lived life to the full".

"He had a fantastic personality that was full of character and was loved by his colleagues and countless friends alike," they said.