Two heroes of the London Bridge attack grew up more than a thousand miles apart but each showed the best of their city on Saturday night.
The bravery of Millwall fan Roy Larner and Romanian-born baker Florin Morariu has been revealed amid dozens of phenomenal stories of heroism at the scene of the attack.
While three jihadis went on a killing spree in the capital, both men stood defiant in the face of terror to protect their fellow Londoners.
Roy Larner
The football fan has been named the “Lion of London Bridge” after he launched himself at three jihadis, shouting: “Fuck you, I’m Millwall”.
Roy Larner, 47, was out with friends in Borough Market when the attackers - who killed seven people and left 48 injured - burst into the Black and Blue restaurant and bar.
Larner tried to fight the men, all three of whom were wielding machetes, so his fellow drinkers could escape.
He told The Sun: “They had these long knives and started shouting about Allah. Then it was, ‘Islam, Islam, Islam’.
“Like an idiot I shouted back at them. I thought, ‘I need to take the piss out of these bastards’.”
Larner, who lives in Peckham, was stabbed eight times in his head, chest and hands as he tried to hold back the attackers.
“They were stabbing and slashing at me as I waved my arms for 20 or 30 seconds,” he said. “I just did what I had to do.”
The three jihadis - two of which have now been named as Khuram Butt and Rachid Redouane - then left the pub, looking for more victims to attack.
Larner was rushed to St Thomas’ Hospital in a critical condition, where he underwent surgery.
He is now recovering and says he expects to be out of hospital in a week.
Well-wishers have donated more than £10,000 to reward Larner’s heroism, while his friend Archie Webber-Brown has launched a petition calling for him to receive the George Cross, one of the highest honours for civilian bravery.
Webber-Brown wrote on the petition: “Roy Larner charged at the terrorists on London Bridge in order to try and stop them and help others escape.
“He ended up getting himself stabbed multiple times showing great courage and preparing his body for the ultimate self sacrifice to help others.
“He should be acknowledged and rewarded for his actions,” he added.
To date, more than 2,000 people have signed the petition.
Florin Morariu
A Romanian-born baker risked his own life on Saturday night in an attempt to tackle the deadly jihadis, armed with just two bakery crates.
When Florin Morariu, who works at Bread Ahead in Borough Market, heard a commotion outside of the shop, he rushed to help.
He told the Associated Press: “We were looking out of the window because we saw that everyone was agitated, everyone was running, people, women... they were fainting, falling and we went outside to see what was happening.”
Letting around 20 terrified people shelter inside the bakery, Morariu then ran to tackle the terrorists, who were stabbing pedestrians nearby.
Speaking on the Victoria Derbyshire show, Morariu said: “I felt pity for the victims, I didn’t know how to handle things or react, I thought to myself I’m also in danger.
“I just threw the crate at [one of the attackers].
“I threw the first crate and I knew he was going to dodge it. While he was dodging it, I walked towards him and hit him in the head with the other crate.”
Morariu was then told to run by the police.
Hundreds of people have commended the baker for his incredible bravery, calling him a “hero”: