For commuters heading to work on the morning of 7 July 2005, the day had begun unremarkably. It was lightly raining, a Thursday and London had just hours before been named as the host city for the 2012 Olympics.
Newspapers carried rare good news, celebrating Britain’s victory. “London’s Triumph,” proclaimed one headline. “Gold Rush,” declared another. Yet, within hours, those jubilant announcements would become little more than a footnote in the memories of those caught up in the tragedy that followed.
Shortly before 9am, four young suicide bombers attacked London’s Underground and bus system, killing 52 passengers and injuring more than 770 people.
Confusion, panic and then terror gripped the capital, as survivors emerged from Tube stations, some with lost limbs, others supporting their fellow travellers who were caked in dust.
It soon became clear that Britain was facing its worst terrorist attack since the 1988 Lockerbie bombing – an event that would trigger one of the most intense examinations of police and security service failings in modern history.
Terror group al-Qaeda soon claimed responsibility, with a series of attempted bombings in the following weeks leading to heightened tensions, tragically resulting in the police shooting dead an innocent man, Jean Charles de Menezes, at Stockwell Tube station.
Ahead of a new BBC documentary series recounting the tragedy, here’s a minute-by-minute account of how London’s day of terror unfolded – and the aftermath that shook Britain.
4am – Bombers Mohammad Sidique Khan, 30, Shehzad Tanweer, 22, and Hasib Hussain, 18, leave their rented flat in Leeds and drive to Luton. They had been using the property in Alexandra Grove as a “bomb-making factory”.
Charles Clarke, home secretary when the attacks occurred, described the bombers as “cleanskins”, meaning that they were previously unknown to authorities.
5.05am – Jermaine Lindsay, 19, the fourth bomber, arrives at Luton station, and is seen sleeping in his car until his accomplices arrive.
6.51am – The four men unite in the car park of Luton station, and are seen by witnesses opening the boots of their cars and taking out large rucksacks. Each contained 2-5kg of explosives, while nail bombs were found by police in a rented Nissan Micra.
7.24am – The four men catch the delayed Bedford to Brighton train bound for London King’s Cross Thameslink. A witness reported that the bombers appeared relaxed and in high spirits.
8,23am – The train arrives at King’s Cross and the bombers disembark. They are seen hugging before they head their separate ways shortly after they enter the London Underground.
Khan, the ringleader, goes to board a westbound Circle line train, Tanweer an eastbound Circle line train and Lindsay a southbound Piccadilly line train. Hussain is seen walking towards the Piccadilly line entrance but later leaves King’s Cross station after failing to board the train.
8.49am – Three bombs explode on the Underground within 50 seconds of one another. The first was set off on a six-car Circle Line train by Tanweer between Liverpool Street and Aldgate stations and killed seven people.
The second bomb was detonated by Khan on a Circle line train which had just left Edgware Road and was travelling westbound towards Paddington, killing six. Just seconds later, Lindsey, who was travelling on a packed Piccadilly line service, detonated his rucksack between King’s Cross and Russell Square, killing 26.
Survivor Michael Henning, a 39-year-old banker at Lloyds, told The Independent in the aftermath that missing his usual train is what saved his life. He was waiting for the next service when the first bomb was detonated.
“There was a flash of light and everything went black,” Mr Henning said, “You couldn’t see; you could just hear shouting and screaming. We managed to find a way out. What we left behind was absolute carnage.”
8.52am – The first calls are received that an incident has occurred on the Underground. It is initially thought to be a power surge, but the supervisor at Aldgate station tells the control room: “There’s people on the track.”
Terry O’Shea, a construction worker from Worcester, also survived the attack. The 42-year-old told this publication at the time: “I was in the third carriage, the one behind the one where the explosion was. There was a loud bang and we felt the train shudder. Then smoke started coming into the compartment.
“It was terrible. People were panicking, but they calmed down after one or two minutes. As they led us down the track past the carriage where the explosion was, we could see the roof was torn off it, and there were bodies on the track.”
Meanwhile, Hussain is suspected of having issues with his bomb and tries to contact his friends via mobile phone. He then buys a nine-volt battery from WHSmith before heading across Euston Road to McDonald’s.
9am – London Underground operators continue to receive confused calls about incidents on the tracks, with reports of a train derailment and a person under a train at Edgware Road and a loud bang at Russell Square. At this time, it is not thought to be terror-related.
The Independent’s assistant editor, Caroline Gammell, then a general reporter for the Press Association, was on the Underground at the time. She recounts: “I was on my way to cover a press briefing about a health study due to be published the next day. Just 24 hours earlier I had been surrounded by thousands of ecstatic people in Trafalgar Square as the news broke that London had won the bid for the 2012 Olympics – today’s job was far more mundane.
“I jumped on the Tube at Victoria where PA’s offices were based, but after just one stop the train came to a halt at Oxford Circus. Nothing felt out of the ordinary until everyone was ordered off the train due to a ‘power surge’. As I emerged alongside scores of other commuters, I tried to call the office to tell them I wasn’t going to get to the job on time, but it was almost impossible to get a signal.
“Unwittingly, I walked west towards Marble Arch where the scores of people on the streets turned into hundreds and there was a growing sense of chaos. It appeared the power surge had affected the whole Tube network. When I finally got through to the office, all thoughts of health reports were abandoned as I was told something had happened at Edgware Road station, but no one knew what.”
9.13am – A major emergency is declared by the Underground’s control room, with a “code amber” instructing all trains to go to the nearest available platform. Another instruction is sent at 9.40am to begin evacuating an estimated 200,000 passengers.
Mandy Yu, then aged 23, was on a Tube near King’s Cross station when one of the bombs detonated on her train. She described to an Independent reporter at the time how she felt a “shudder” from the front of the vehicle.
“Everything went black, then the emergency lights went on,” she said. “Thick soot from the tracks flooded through the train; it was so difficult to breathe that people were kneeling down in the carriage to try and get some air. A lady in the first carriage was screaming and screaming.
“People were praying. We passed messages from carriage to carriage for about 20 minutes in the dim light, saying there was no fire and people should try to stay calm. Some people were trying to open the doors and smash the windows to get out, and to let air in, but were unable to.
“We had been trapped for more than half an hour when we were evacuated through the back of the train. The power on the tracks had been switched off, and we walked through the tunnel.”
Around 9.15am – Ms Gammell, who had quickly been reassigned by the news desk, arrived to a scene of chaos at Edgware Road. “I turned right and saw a mass of people walking towards me. As I got closer, I increasingly noticed that they were covered in dust and soot.
“I also realised I was the only person walking north, while everyone else was scurrying south. Their faces were etched with shock and confusion and it became clear that whatever had happened was horrific. As they passed, people kept referring to an explosion, a loud noise, a bang and then darkness.
“I stopped one man with a blackened face and asked what had happened. He turned to me and said simply, ‘There were so many bodies. I tried to help but it was too late’.”
9.24am – Hussain is last seen on CCTV. He goes on to board a number 91 bus westbound from Gray’s Inn Road to Euston where he boarded a number 30 bus to Old Street. Five minutes later, the Met Police announce a major incident in London but say it is too early to know what has happened.
9.47am – After finding a seat on the top deck of a crowded double-decker bus, Hussain detonates his device which explodes in Tavistock Square, killing 13 and injuring 110. The blast occurred outside the headquarters of the British Medical Association, where several senior doctors were on hand as the building became an impromptu casualty station.
Eyewitness Ayobami Bello was 46 at the time, working as security guard at the nearby London School of Tropical Hygiene and Medicine. He told The Independent how he saw the blast destroy the bus.
“It was terrible – the bus went to pieces,” Mr Bello said. “There were so many bodies on the floor. The back was completely gone. It was blown off completely and a dead body was hanging out and there were dead bodies on the road. It was a horrible thing.
“I can’t believe it. I can’t even believe I survived it. There was panic and everyone was running for their lives. I saw a lady coming towards me soaked in blood. Everyone was in confusion.”
10.21am – Scotland Yard confirms that there have been “multiple explosions” in London. Soon after, British Transport Police confirm the bus bombing.
10.53am – Home secretary Charles Clarke confirms that London’s public transport has been suspended, adding that the “dreadful incidents” have caused “terrible injuries”. Drivers are urged to avoid entering the city, as the scale of the horror attack is being realised.
11.15am – More than two hours after the first blasts, London’s Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Ian Blair, tells a news conference that they are dealing with a “confusing situation”, and that he knows of “about six explosions”. He refuses to confirm any fatalities.
11.25am – The first reports confirming deaths in the blasts emerge with a police spokesperson saying there are at least two fatalities.
12.05am – Prime minister Tony Blair emerges from a G8 summit in Scotland to tell the country that “it is reasonably clear there have been a series of terrorist attacks in London”.
He later added: “It is important ... that those engaged in terrorism realise that our determination to defend our values and our way of life is greater than their determination to cause death and destruction to innocent people in a desire to impose extremism on the world.
“Whatever they do, it is our determination that they will never succeed in destroying what we hold dear in this country and in other civilised nations throughout the world.”
12.10pm – Terror group al-Qaeda, which carried out the 9/11 attack in New York, claims responsibility. In a 200-word statement, it said: “The heroic mujahideen have carried out a blessed raid in London.”
12.55pm – Mr Clarke tells parliament that there have been four explosions, but that the perpetrators are unknown. He confirms that the Underground will remain closed all day. Meanwhile, Mr Blair prepares to return to London via helicopter in order to deal with the unfolding crisis.
Shortly after he departs, US president George W Bush, speaking at the Gleneagles summit, also condemns the attacks.
15.25pm – The death toll is updated to 33, with reports of many serious injuries and lost limbs. After arriving in Westminster, Mr Blair vows to bring those responsible to justice.
22.19pm – Hasib Hussain’s family report their son missing to the emergency casualty bureau.
23.40pm – Police reveal that they have found identification belonging to Khan and Tanweer, as well as phones and other personal items during the course of their investigation.
The aftermath
It was later revealed that hydrogen peroxide was the key component used in the construction of the bombs. The four men had used household materials to construct their devices in a Leeds flat, taping the curtains to windows to conceal their activities.
Finding the property just five days after the attack, police would uncover a scene hastily abandoned, with bomb-making materials strewn about. It became clear that the men never intended to return.
Over the coming days and weeks, more evidence of the level of detailed planning that had been put into the attacks would be revealed, with the death toll rising to 52 people. All were UK residents from a range of different backgrounds, and they included exchange students.
In the wake of the bombings, counterterrorism funding saw a sharp rise. MI5’s budget nearly doubled within five years, while police forces also received additional resources for surveillance tools and training programmes to track and intercept terrorists more effectively.
Legislation passed after the attacks granted authorities sweeping new surveillance powers, but not without controversy. The Terrorism Act 2006 allowed suspects to be detained without charge for up to 28 days and criminalised the glorification of terrorism. Additional laws expanded police access to phone and internet records.
New security units were established, including the National Counter Terrorism Security Office. These specialised teams focused on identifying threats and improving coordination between police and intelligence agencies.
The government also introduced the Prevent strategy to counter radicalisation by engaging directly with communities. However, the programme faced criticism for fostering mistrust, with opponents arguing it disproportionately targeted British Muslims.
