Obituary: James Mayes

James Mayes returned from holiday the night before the attack

He was a son to make any parents proud. James Mayes was a popular 28-year-old with a high-flying job as an analyst at the Healthcare Commission, which strives to improve the NHS.

On a normal morning he would not have been on the Piccadilly Line train, where he lost his life, but on 7 July he was on his way to a seminar in Holborn.

His parents, Rosemary and Bernard, and sister Rachel, described him as a "devoted son" and "loving brother".

A family statement, which thanked the police for their support, said: "James, who held a politics degree from Warwick University, was an intelligent, sincere and outgoing person who always put other people before himself.

"His deep respect and concern for others, irrespective of faith or creed, allowed him to always see the good in everyone, and stands as an absolute contradiction to the traits of those who perpetrated this awful tragedy."

'Wonderful man'

Mr Mayes lived with a friend in Barnsbury, North London.

James was the lovable, unpunctual, irritating, wonderful man that I miss terribly Rohen Kapur

He had just returned from holiday the evening before the attack, and friends searched hospitals for information after he went missing.

Friend Rohen Kapur said Mr Mayes enjoyed life to the full.

"James was the lovable, unpunctual, irritating, wonderful man that I miss terribly. The world is all the poorer for his passing."

A memorial service was held on 27 July at the Church of St John the Evangelist in Friern Barnet, north London, the area where he grew up.

A memorial was read by Sir Ian Kennedy of the Healthcare Commission and there were several readings from James's favourite books, including the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Lord of the Rings.