Royal Courts of Justice begins to hear details of how each of the 30 British victims died during terrorist shooting in Sousse

A couple who loved travelling together “did not stand a chance” when a terrorist opened fire on them as they sunbathed on a Tunisian beach, an inquest has heard.

John and Janet Stocker, aged 74 and 63, were among the 38 tourists killed when gunman Seifeddine Rezgui went on the rampage at the five-star Riu Imperial Marhaba hotel in Sousse.

Another woman, mother-of-four Trudy Jones, 51, who suffered fatal wounds to her neck and chest, was identified by her glittery nail varnish and dental records, the inquest at the Royal Courts of Justice in London was told.

The inquest has begun to hear details of exactly how each of the 30 Britons caught up in the incident on 26 June 2015 died, together with pen portraits of them.

In a statement, relatives of the Stockers said they were keen travellers and still very much in love. It said: “They were a happy couple, both young at heart, and enjoyed all life could afford. They were frequent flyers and enjoyed travelling to new places and exploring.

“John and Janet’s home life revolved around the most simplest of pleasures – family and friends. They died together doing what they enjoyed most – being side by side.”

They were killed two days before they were due to return home to Surrey and had just arranged dinner with friends so they could end the holiday on a high.

Their friend Anthony Miller, who saw them die, said: “I heard what I thought were firecrackers going off. I looked up and saw the man standing over Janet and John had something in his hands.

“I thought: ‘I don’t believe this is happening.’ It seemed to me he was not very good with the gun. He seemed to have a job controlling it. He was swinging it side to side. I am not sure how many times they had been shot. They must have been the first to be shot. They didn’t stand a chance.”

In his statement, Miller said he knew his wife, Julie, would not be able to run, so he pushed her down into the sand, lay on top of her and told her to play dead.

Trudy Jones, a carer and grandmother-of-eight from Blackwood in south Wales, was on holiday with friends. Her friend Carol Anne Powell said she went to sit by the pool after breakfast while Jones went to the beach to sunbathe.

Powell said: “At around 12 or 12.30pm, I heard the most terrible explosion. The explosion came from behind me, towards the beach area. It was the loudest noise you could ever hear.”

She initially thought it was an explosion in a beach kitchen but then crowds of people appeared, running away from the area.

“I wanted to run towards the beach to check on Trudy, but people were running towards me shouting ‘Go, go’. I started to run towards the hotel with the crowds of people.” Powell eventually decided to play dead in a hotel car park.

In the following days, Powell attended the mortuary where the victims’ bodies were being held. She recognised her friend because of the glittery nail varnish on her toes. Her identity was later confirmed through dental records.

Jones’s family described her as a loving mother, grandmother, sister and daughter. Their statement said: “She was a beautiful person inside and out. She would put everyone’s happiness before her own. Making others happy made her happy. You only had to meet her once and you would never forget her. She was an amazing lady. The world was a much better place with her in it. Truly one of a kind.”

Another member of the party, Mark Hornby, said he had not been aware of the terror threat in Tunisia. In his statement, he said: “I did not check the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website as I was not aware of it. The terror risk was not brought to our attention by Thomson [the holiday company]. I assumed we would be safe on our holiday, especially as the hotel was five stars.”

Survivor Simon Greaves sobbed as his statement was read out. He described diving behind a sun lounger for cover and finding a man who had been hit and was shouting: “I’ve been shot, you fucking bastards.”

Greaves added: “I saw male one [Rezgui] standing over someone. I heard a single shot, like an execution.”

The hearing continues.