John Atkinson, 28

John Atkinson loved his job working with people with autism and Asperger’s. He could often be seen taking those he looked after out into the community where he lived in Radcliffe, Greater Manchester. His family described him as their “life and soul” and “larger than life” – though he had lost eight stone with Slimming World shortly before his death. Paying tribute to him last year, they recalled his “on point” eyebrows and the Nike flip-flops he was never seen without. “John was not somebody that you could have a cross word with – he was too kind and thoughtful for that,” they said.

Courtney Boyle, 19

Courtney Boyle died along with her stepfather, Philip Tron — the pair had travelled from their home in Gateshead to pick up her sister, Nicole, from the Ariana Grande concert. Her boyfriend described the criminology student as “an adventurer, a precious and joyous soul. She made people feel loved and feel safe.” Leeds Beckett University said she was “a lovely, bright and hardworking student who had achieved excellent marks in her first semester with us”.

Kelly Brewster, 32

Described by her colleagues at Aviva insurance as a “pocket rocket in heels”, Kelly Brewster had never been happier, her family said on Tuesday. She had been making plans to have a baby with her partner, Ian – the couple had put a deposit on a house on the day of the attack. A lover of pop music – her life-size poster of Gareth Gates attracted much mirth in the family – she once travelled to Las Vegas to see Jennifer Lopez. She had gone to the concert with her sister Claire and niece Hollie, both of whom were seriously injured in the attack.

Georgina Callander, 18

When Georgina Callander died she was “a girl who was loving life”, her parents said. She had not long passed her driving test and had just bought her first car. She had been accepted into Edge Hill University to study paediatrics and was in her second year of studying health and social care at Runshaw College in Leyland, near her home in Whittle-le-Woods, Lancashire. She met Ariana Grande two years before, tweeting her idol the day before the Manchester Arena concert: “SO EXCITED TO SEE YOU TOMORROW.”

Olivia Campbell-Hardy, 15

Olivia Campbell-Hardy, known as Ollie, was affectionately described by her mother, Charlotte Campbell, as “a gobby cow – she was so cheeky, but you just couldn’t tell her off, it was impossible. You’d just end up laughing.” The youngest in the family, she got away with everything, said Campbell. She was obsessed with makeup, and she loved her eyebrows – they always had to be “on fleek”. Ollie was at the concert with her friend Adam Lawler, who was injured in the attack. Last year he gave Charlotte away when she fulfilled her daughter’s wish that she marry her long-term partner, Paul Hodgson.

Liam Curry, 19, and Chloe Rutherford, 17

Liam Curry was at the concert with his childhood sweetheart, Chloe Rutherford, who also died in the blast. Chloe was a gifted performer and lover of music while Liam was a keen sportsman and talented cricketer. Their parents founded the Chloe and Liam Together Forever Trust to support young people in the arts and sport.

Wendy Fawell, 50

Wendy Fawell, from Otley in West Yorkshire, was killed in the foyer of Manchester Arena where she was waiting with her friend, Caroline Davis Osborne, to pick up their daughters. A former primary school worker, she was described by her son Adam as “a wonderful woman”. Her 15-year-old daughter, Charlotte, was hurt in the attack. So too was Davis Osborne, who said afterwards: “I think about it all of the time, when I go to bed I just see me and Wendy walking into the foyer, that’s all I see when I shut my eyes.”

Martyn Hett, 29

The Coronation Street superfan Martyn Hett had built up a large social media following after TV appearances on Come Dine With Me, which he won, and Tattoo Fixers, when he had a picture of Deirdre Barlow inked on his leg. His mother, Figen Murray, said he always insisted he would die “young and in a tragic way” and had made a list of how his funeral should be. He had an image of his beloved Mariah Carey draped over the coffin lid, and pictures of his other favourite divas decorated the outside. A number of Coronation Street stars attended the funeral, including Helen Worth – who plays Gail Platt – who was warned in advance that her face was on the side of his casket.

Alison Howe, 46

Alison Howe, a sexual health nurse from Royton in Oldham, was killed while waiting in the foyer with her friend Lisa Lees, who also died. Her husband, Steve, told mourners at her funeral that she was “beautiful inside and out”. The couple had two daughters, Sasha and Darcy, who had gone to the Ariana Grande concert.

Megan Hurley, 15

Megan Hurley, from Liverpool, was described by her family as “a fun-loving, sincere, caring and beautiful young lady”. She loved music and going to concerts and having sleepovers with her friends. Her brother Bradley, now 21, broke both legs in the attack. At Megan’s funeral a tribute from him was read out in which he said: “She was not only my sister but she was my best friend. Meg was always game to accompany me on my errands as long as there was a Maccies breakfast in it for her ... The only thing we didn’t agree on was how long cuddles should last. She would always tell me to ‘get off’ but holding on is one thing I will never regret.”

Nell Jones, 14

Nell, from Goostrey in Cheshire, had gone to the concert with her friend, Freya Lewis, who was seriously injured in the attack. Her brother Sam described his sister as “kind, caring, loving, confident and clever”, and said she would have wanted people to “love not hate” following her death. At an awards ceremony recently he said: “Her kindness is something that this world will be a much worse place without. In fact, all things will be worse without Nell. But if everyone here tells someone about her spirit, her determination, her love, her kindness, then she will never be too far away.” Her family has set up a charity to improve the lives and wellbeing of young people in north-west England, the Remembering Nell Foundation.

Michelle Kiss, 45

Michelle Kiss, a mother of three from Whalley in Lancashire, died when she went to pick up her daughter Millie from the concert. At her funeral, 12-year-old Millie said the death of her mother had left her asking “why do the good people get given the worst things?” – adding that she loved her “to the moon and back and a billion times more”. Images of Millie being hugged by a police officer in the immediate aftermath of the bombing were seen around the globe.

Angelika and Marcin Klis, 39 and 42

The Polish couple from York had spent the night in Manchester before arriving at the arena to collect their daughters from the concert. A Just Giving page set up after the couple died raised enough money to buy a house for their two daughters. Giving an interview to BBC Radio York in December, Alex Klis, then 20, said the hardest thing was “just not having them there”. “I don’t mean them doing everything, but them being there when you’re home by yourself and you don’t hear my dad coughing upstairs or my mum snoring before work,” she said.

Sorrell Leczkowski, 14

Sorrell Leczkowski wanted to be an architect and planned to go to Columbia University in New York to study, “so that she could build hotels with slides coming out of the rooms and so that she could build her mum a house”, her grandfather Michael Healey said. His wife, Pauline, Sorrell’s grandmother, was seriously injured in the attack when they went to pick up relatives from the concert. “Sorrell was only 14, but she was our rock, she kept us all grounded. She was such a clever, talented, creative girl, there was nothing she couldn’t do,” said Healey.

Lisa Lees, 43

A beauty therapist from Oldham, Lisa Lees had gone to university as an adult, graduating the year before the attack. Before that she had won an award of excellence in London for her work with children who had complex mental health issues. For five years before her death she looked after her mother, Elaine Hunter, when she was ill, along with her brother Lee. She had been at the concert with her elder daughter, India, who described her as “the best mum in the universe and the bestest friend that I could ask for”.

Eilidh MacLeod, 14

The parents of Eilidh MacLeod, from Barra in the Outer Hebrides, described their daughter as “vivacious and full of fun”. “She loved all music whether it was listening to Ariana or playing the bagpipes with her pipe band,” they said. Eilidh had travelled to Manchester to see Ariana Grande with her friend Laura MacIntyre, who survived the bombing but was badly injured. The Barra parish priest, Father John Paul MacKinnon, told the BBC that Eilidh had lived her life “with a smile on her face and a smile in her heart”. Money made from a single by the band Skipinnish is going towards building a permanent memorial to Eilidh on Barra.

Elaine McIver, 43

Elaine McIver, a police officer from Cheshire, was with her partner, Paul, waiting in the foyer of the arena to collect his 13-year-old daughter and her friend when the bomb went off, killing her and leaving Paul seriously injured. Elaine’s family said Paul had been the love of her life and the pair had been looking forward to moving to a new home in Wales. “Our lives have been enriched by the time that we have had with her, but they will never now be the same again,” said the family in a statement. “We try to take comfort from how fortunate we have been to have had her in our lives, rather than think how much of a void there will be now that she has gone.”

Saffie Roussos, eight

Saffie Roussos was the youngest to die in the attack. Her mother, Lisa Roussos, and her older sister, Ashlee Bromwich, were injured by shrapnel but survived. Her father, Andrew, is hoping to stage a Live Aid-style concert in her memory at Old Trafford cricket ground in August, and issued an appeal to Bono and Ed Sheeran on Tuesday to join the lineup. “She loved life, she loved music, I want to put on a concert for the world to stop and listen,” he told the BBC.

Philip Tron, 32

Philip Tron, a barman from Gateshead, was killed alongside Courtney Boyle, the 19-year-old daughter of his partner, Deborah Hutchinson. “Philip was such a fun-loving, energetic soul, he would light up the darkest room and lift your spirits with his infectious laugh, witty sense of humour and his beautiful smile,” his mother said. “Words cannot express the huge void his passing has left in all our lives.”

Jane Tweddle, 51

Jane Tweddle, who worked as a school receptionist in Blackpool, had travelled to Manchester with one of her friends to drop her children off at the concert. Jane and her friend were waiting in the area where the explosion happened. Jane’s daughters, Harriet, Lily and Isabelle, described their mum as the “light of their life” who always made sure their home was “full of laughter and love”.