The Briton who died in the bombing was named yesterday as Gordon Cousland, who was just months away from getting married.

Five foreigners were among the 26 dead identified last night.

Mr Cousland's brother Robin said the family had become fearful for Mr Cousland when they failed to get a response from his mobile phone after they heard about the bomb.

“Normally when he visits a place he is pretty good at phoning to say he has arrived,” he said.

“As the evening went on, we heard nothing from him and began to fear the worst.”

Mr Cousland (39), the father of a six-month-old daughter, and who was due to marry in April, was described as a man of energy and enthusiasm by his colleagues in London. The property consultant worked in the London office of marketing company CACI.

Also among the dead was London resident Kirill Budrashov, initially thought to be British by Russian investigators.

An acquaintance said yesterday that Mr Budrashov was not a British citizen.

He was travelling with his girlfriend, Elvira Muratova, to a meeting in Moscow. The pair worked together at New Millennium Group, a financial headhunting firm.

Ms Muratova survived and is expected to make a full recovery.