A British man who lost his wife and two children in the Sri Lanka terror attacks has paid tribute to his “wonderful, perfect” family.

Anita Nicholson, a Singapore-based lawyer, her son Alex, 14, and daughter Annabel, 11, were having breakfast at the Shangri-La hotel in Colombo, when one of seven suicide bombers struck on Easter Sunday.

Ben Nicholson confirmed his family’s deaths in a statement released on Monday.

“Anita was a wonderful, perfect wife and a brilliant, loving and inspirational mother to our two wonderful children,” he said.

“Alex and Annabel were the most amazing, intelligent, talented and thoughtful children and Anita and I were immensely proud of them both and looking forward to seeing them develop into adulthood.”

Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Show all 38 1 /38 Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Sri Lankan Special Task Force officers raid a house following an explosion in capital Colombo AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A blood-spattered statue of Jesus Christ while crime scene officials inspect the site of a bomb blast, as the sun shines through the blown-out roof, inside St Sebastian's Church in Negombo Reuters Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A police officer inspects the damage after a bombing at the Shangri-La Hotel in Sri Lankan capital Colombo AP Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Sri Lankan soldiers look on inside the St Sebastian's Church at Katuwapitiya in Negombo following a bomb blast during the Easter service AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A woman cries next to a coffin of a bomb blast victim. A series of eight devastating bomb blasts ripped through high-end hotels and churches holding Easter services in Sri Lanka on April 21, killing more than 300 people AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath People who live near the church that was attacked the day before, leave their houses as the military try to defuse a suspected van before it exploded in Colombo Reuters Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Shoes and belongings of victims are collected as evidence at St Sebastian's Church AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Sri Lankan police were forded to clear an area while Special Task Force Bomb Squad officers inspected the site of an exploded van near a church the day after it was attacked Reuters Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath The Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo, Sri Lanka following a bombing AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Queues at the National Blood Bank in Colombo, Sri Lanka after a request for blood to aid in recovery efforts Mr Lavasquabble/Twitter Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Medical response team work to remove dead bodies from the scene of bombings in Sri Lankan capital Colombo AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Sri Lankan security personnel inspect the debris of a car after it exploded when police tried to defuse a bomb AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Security personnel work at the scene of a bombing at a church in Batticaloa in Sri Lanka AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A woman is helped near St Anthony's Shrine after a blast in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Sunday 21 April 2019. At least 130 people were killed and more than 500 hospitalised after near-simultaneous explosions hit three hotels and three churches on Easter Sunday. AP Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Sri Lankan police officers clear the road as an ambulance drives through carrying injured of church blasts in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Sunday 21 April 2019 AP Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A Sri Lankan soldier stands guard near a car explosion AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A woman prays at St. Sebastian's Church in Negombo AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Priests stand inside St Anthony's Shrine, Kochchikade church on the outskirts of Colombo after a bombing Reuters Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A Sri Lankan woman living near St. Anthony's shrine runs for safety with her infant after police found explosive devices in a parked vehicle in Colombo AP Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath People react during a mass for victims, two days after a string of suicide bomb attacks on churches and luxury hotels Reuters Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Security personal react as a device was detonated in a controled explosion in a van near the St Anthony's Church EPA Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Security forces inspect the scene of a bombing at the Shangri-La Hotel in Sri Lankan capital Colombo Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath The Kingsbury hotel in Colombo, Sri Lanka after a bombing attack Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath The damaged interior of a church in Negombo, Sri Lanka following a bombing attack Reuters Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Police and security personnel stand guard outside the Shangri-La Hotel in Sri Lankan capital Colombo following a bombing attack EPA Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Debris is seen at St Anthony's Church in this still image from video footage after explosions hit churches and hotels in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on 21 April 2019 Derana TV/via Reuters Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Damage inside a church following a bombing attack AP Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A Sri Lankan Special Task Force officer scales a house during a raid following an explosion in capital Colombo AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A general interior view showing damage after an explosion hit St Anthony's Church in Kochchikade, Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Sunday 21 April 2019 EPA Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Priests walk into St Anthony's Shrine Kochchikade church after an explosion in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on 21 April 2019 Reuters Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A Sri Lankan police officer stands outside St Anthony's Shrine in Colombo, Sri Lanka, after a blast on Sunday 21 April 2019 AP Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath A shoe of a victim is seen in front of the St Anthony's Shrine, Kochchikade Church Reuters Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Local and security officials gather at the scene at St Anthony's Church in Kochchikade, Colombo, Sri Lanka EPA Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath An ambulance is seen outside the church premises with gathered security personnel following a blast at St Anthony's Shrine in Kochchikade, Colombo, on Sunday 21 April 2019 AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Armed policemen patrol the area after an explosion hit at St Anthony's Church in Kochchikade in Colombo, Sri Lanka, 21 April 2019 EPA Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Sri Lankan Army soldiers secure the area around St. Anthony's Shrine after a blast in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday 21 April 2019 AP Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Sri Lankan security personnel keep watch outside the church premises following a blast at the St Anthony's Shrine in Kochchikade, Colombo, on Sunday 21 April 2019 AFP/Getty Sri Lanka: Scene of the bomb attacks and aftermath Police officers inspect the scene after an explosion hit at St Anthony's Church in Kochchikade in Colombo, Sri Lanka, 21 April 2019 EPA

“They shared with their mother the priceless ability to light up any room they entered and bring joy to the lives of all they came into contact with.

Mr Nicholson added: “I would like to give my sincere thanks for the medical teams at General Hospital, Colombo, for treating Anita, Alex and Annabel with great dignity and me with kindness and sympathy.”

The Nicholsons were one of three British families so far known to have lost victims in the attacks.

Two siblings with dual British and American citizenship, 15-year-old Amelie Linsey and her brother Daniel, 19, were on holiday with their father.

Matthew Linsey, 60, told The Times he believed Amelie's injuries were less serious and made the desperate decision to carry his son away and leave his daughter alive with other survivors.

“You can’t describe how bad it was, people were screaming,” he said. “I thought my daughter was better off. I couldn’t find her because I was with my son.”

Daniel could not be revived at hospital and Mr Linsey, who was injured by shrapnel, later found out his daughter died of injuries from the blast at the Shangri-La hotel's Table One cafe.

Daniel was a student at Westminster Kingsway College who planned to study marketing at university following a gap year doing charity work abroad, while Amelie was a pupil at Godolphin and Latymer School in Hammersmith, west London.

British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka: ' British citizens may have been caught in Easter explosions'

“Both children were very interested in different cultures. They loved travelling abroad. That’s a very important part of who they were.”

Bill Harrop and Dr Sally Bradley, a married couple from Manchester, were also killed.

Mr Harrop was a retired firefighter. Dave Keelan, his former colleague, paid tribute to him on Monday.

“Bill served here for 30 years, retiring at the end of 2012,” Mr Keelan, the assistant county fire officer at Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, said.

“He was a much a loved and respected colleague and friend. He will be greatly missed.”

The couple had moved from Manchester to Australia after Mr Harrop’s retirement.

“[The couple’s] aim was always to experience life to the fullest. Kindred spirits they travelled the world together, safe in each other’s arms and with smiles across their faces,” Dr Bradley’s family said in a statement.

“They were the heartbeat of their families and the inspiration in their lives. They will be forever sorely missed, but never forgotten.”

Sri Lanka’s high commissioner to the UK said that eight British nationals were so far known to have been killed in the attacks.

(Anita Jane Nicholson/Facebook (Anita Jane Nicholson/Facebook)

British counterterror police were appealing for anyone with footage of the attacks or time leading up to them to pass it to officers for future inquests.

Officers have been deployed to airports across the UK to speak to anyone returning from Sri Lanka.

A small team of specialist officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, including family liaison officers, have been deployed to the country to support the families British victims and help with repatriation and the inquest process.

At least 321 people were killed and 500 wounded in the series of suicide bombings that ripped through churches and luxury hotels on Easter Sunday.

Nisanga Mayadunne, who studied at the University of London according to her Facebook profile, and her mother Shantha – a TV chef – were also reported to be among the dead.

Ms Mayadunne posted a photo of her family eating breakfast in the Shangri-La shortly before the blast.

The vast majority of the victims were Sri Lankan but the dead also included people from the US, Denmark, China, Japan, Portugal and Australia.

The tourism ministry said 39 foreign visitors were known to have been killed and another 28 were wounded.

Three children of Denmark’s richest man were among almost 300 victims killed.

Anders Holch Povlsen’s four children were visiting the country over the Easter holiday.

Alma Holch Povlsen posted an Instagram photo of her three siblings on holiday, days before the Sri Lanka attacks (Instagram)

His daughter Alma posted a photo on Instagram days before the bombings, showing her three siblings sat by a palm-linked swimming pool and calling them “three little bears”.

A spokesperson for Mr Holch Povlsen confirmed three of the children had been killed in the Easter Sunday attacks, and Denmark’s foreign ministry said three Danes were among the victims.

Mr Holch Povlsen is the largest stakeholder in Asos and Scotland’s biggest private landowner.

He is the CEO and owner of retailer Bestseller, which operates several clothing chains.

The 46-year-old was ranked at 252 on a 2019 list of billionaires by Forbes, which reported his net worth as $7.9bn (£6.1bn).

He and his wife Anne hold an estimated 200,000 acres of the Scottish Highlands, and had planned to rewild the landscape to preserve it for future generations.

He previously wrote of a “deep connection” to the Scottish landscape, adding: “It is a project that we know cannot be realised in our lifetime, which will bear fruit not just for our own children but also for the generations of visitors who, like us, hold a deep affection the Scottish Highlands.”

Kieran Arasaratnam, a professor at Imperial College London Business School, was also staying at the Shangri-La and described “total chaos”.

“Everyone was running and a lot of people just didn’t know what was going on,” he told the BBC.

“People had blood on their shirts and there was someone carrying a girl to the ambulance. The walls and the floor were covered in blood.”

Sri Lanka Easter Sunday explosions: What we know so far

Tulip Siddiq, the MP for Hampstead and Kilburn, said she had lost a relative in the attacks.

“It’s all so devastating,” she wrote on Twitter. “Hope everyone is keeping safe. Solidarity with the people of Sri Lanka.”

Theresa May called the massacres “truly appalling”, adding: “No one should ever have to practise their faith in fear.”

The first American victim named was Dieter Kowalski, a technical services manager at the multinational publisher Pearson.

CEO John Fallon said the blast struck when he had just arrived at a hotel used by “many colleagues” for business trips over several years.

“Colleagues who knew Dieter well talk about how much fun he was to be around, how big-hearted and full-spirited he was,” Mr Fallon added.

“We mourn Dieter deeply today ... we’re angry that a good man, who took simple pleasure in fixing things, has been killed, along with many others, by evil men and women who know only how to destroy.”

The minister for telecommunications, Harin Fernando, claimed that “some intelligence officers” were aware of the plot and the prime minister has ordered an inquiry into potential failings.

People who live near St Anthony’s church leave their houses as the military try to defuse a suspected van before it explodes in Colombo (Reuters) (REUTERS)

In Colombo, St Anthony’s Shrine and the Cinnamon Grand, Shangri-La and Kingsbury hotels were targeted in the first wave of explosions shortly before 9am local time as worshippers attended morning services and tourists enjoyed their breakfasts.

At around the same time as the blasts in Colombo, explosions were also reported at St Sebastian’s Church in Negombo and at Zion Church in the eastern town of Batticaloa.

A few hours later, two more blasts occurred just outside Colombo, one of them at a guesthouse, where two people were killed, the other near an overpass.

Three police officers were killed during a search at a suspected safe house on the outskirts of Colombo when its occupants are believed to have detonated explosives to prevent arrest.

Another device was destroyed by security services in a controlled explosion on Monday, sparking panic near St Anthony’s Shrine, and more than 80 bomb detonators were found at Colombo’s main bus depot and a nearby rubbish dump.

A curfew was imposed by the authorities on Sunday night and social media use was also restricted by the authorities, who claimed the move was to prevent the spread of false information.

The president was to declare a nationwide emergency that will go into effect at midnight on Monday, granting police and the military extensive powers to detain and interrogate without court orders.

Britons in Sri Lanka who need help were urged to call the High Commission in Colombo on +94 11 5390639, while people in the UK worried about friends or family should call the Foreign Office on 020 7008 1500.