The London Bridge terror attackers who killed eight people had taken large amounts of steroids, a court heard today.

Khuram Butt, 27, Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22, ploughed into pedestrians in a white van on the bridge before stabbing victims in the nearby market with 12-inch ceramic knives on June 3 last year.

The attack lasted from 10.07 to 10.16pm when the attackers, who killed eight people in total, were shot dead by police at the scene.

Khuram Butt, Rachid Redouane and Youssef Zaghba had large amounts of steroids in their systems when they carried out the London Bridge terror attack, a coroner has heard

The trio were shot by police after killing eight people in their rampage last summer

Canadian Christine Archibald, 30, and Frenchman Xavier Thomas, 45, died as a result of the van attack. Alexandre Pigeard, 26, Sara Zelenak, 21, Kirsty Boden, 28, Sebastien Belanger, 36, James McMullan, 32, and Ignacio Echeverria, 39, died as a result of the knife attack.

Chief Coroner of England and Wales Mark Lucraft QC, leading the inquest, started the pre-inquest hearing by expressing his condolences to the families of the victims, who were present at the Old Bailey today.

Jonathan Hough QC told the court that a toxicologist would be required for the inquest to prepare a report on the potential steroid use of the attackers.

He said: 'Analysis of samples taken from the attackers revealed the presence of DHEA, a steroid hormone, above the acceptable physiological range in each of the attackers.

'These findings suggest use of the steroid DHEA recently prior to death i.e. in a period ranging from several hours to days before death.

'A suitable expert has been instructed to prepare a report on the implications of these findings.'

(Top row left to right) Canadian Christine Archibald, James McMullan, Alexandre Pigeard, chef Sebastien Belanger and (bottom row left to right) Australian nurse Kirsty Boden, Australian Sara Zelenak, Xavier Thomas and Spanish banker Ignacio Echeverria died in the attack

The chief coroner for England and Wales is holding a pre-inquest hearin into the deaths from the London Bridge and Borough Market terror attack.

Coroner Mark Lucraft QC is expected to give initial directions to pave the way for a 'rigorous and thorough' investigation during the hearing at the Old Bailey.

He is responsible for the inquests into the deaths of the eight victims as well as those of the terrorists.

The coroner is being assisted by Jonathan Hough QC and Aaron Moss as counsel to the London Bridge and Borough Market Inquests.

Two inquests, one into the deaths of the victims, and the other into the deaths of the attackers, will take place in early 2019 at a date to be set.

Investigators at the scene following the attack in June last year. Two inquests will look at the circumstances surrounding the attack will take place next year

Coroner Lucraft said the purpose would be to discover: 'who died, when they died, where they died, and how they died.'

Analyses have been performed on items found at the scene, including the attackers' knives, mobile phones, and the 'fake suicide belts', which were actually a set of bottles strapped to their bodies with tape.

A police appeal to members of the public to provide video and picture evidence had 'produced some useful material' which has been considered in the investigation, the court heard.

Khuram Butt, one of the attackers, was the subject of an MI5 priority investigation from mid-2015, but Rachid Redouane and Yousseff Zaghba had never been investigated by the agency, according to counsel submissions.

Flowers laid near Borough Market in the days after the shocking attack

A jury will sit into the inquest into the death of the terrorists as they died at the hands of police officers. A jury is required even if there is no basis for thinking any officer did anything wrong.

There will be no jury for the inquest into the victims.

The victim inquest will include accounts of the aftermath of each attack and the care, assistance and treatment given to the victims, as well as the injuries they sustained and the cause of death.

The hearing concerning the death of the perpetrators will cover each of the attacker's personal backgrounds, whether and how they came to the attention of UK national authorities.

It will also determine whether there were any 'warning signs' - during their planning and preparation for the attacks and whether they received any assistance from others.

Representatives from the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), London Ambulance, London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority, Met Commission, and Home Office were all at the packed Old Bailey hearing today.

A similar inquest into the Westminster Bridge attack, which saw five people dead and more than 50 injured, will likely be held in autumn this year.