“We demand truth and justice for the murder of Jean Charles de Menezes,” said the placard held by one of the protesters outside the inquest yesterday; and wherever they thought they would find it, they probably never expected it to be at the Oval cricket ground.

There, in the incongruous setting of the John Major Room — a fittingly grey function room usually filled by corporate sponsors and their guests enjoying a good lunch before settling down to an afternoon's cricket — a jury of six women and five men sat down to answer the question of how Mr de Menezes met his death.

Inquests are not normally held at cricket grounds, but then this was no normal inquest.

Such are the fraught questions that surround the shooting of the Brazilian that the inquest had acquired a momentum all its own, with lawyers — 15 barristers, to say nothing of the solicitors and their assistants — family members, interpreters and the media all needing to be accommodated.

No regular coroner's court could handle such a crowd, and as the hearing had to be held within the jurisdiction of the local coroner, the Oval it was, about a mile away from Stockwell Tube station, where Mr de Menezes met his death.

More than 100 people crammed into the long room, including three of Mr de Menezes's cousins and a family friend who were given headphones to listen to a translation of the proceedings provided by two interpreters seated in a glass booth at the back of the court.

In the public area sat a row of campaign supporters, wearing black T-shirts with the words “We are all terrorist suspects now”.

As the jury filed down the corridor to the John Major Room, they not have paid any attention to the prints aligning the wall depicting the first cricket match played at the Oval in 1845; they certainly did not notice the two groundsmen mowing the wicket outside because of the frosted glass that blocked their view.

However, the coroner, Sir Michael Wright, could not resist a little cricketing joke as the jurors took their seats for the final stage of the jury selection process.

“You must regard yourselves as the 1st XI, so far as serving on the jury is concerned,” said Sir Michael, a former High Court judge.

He might have permitted himself the briefest of smiles at that one, but a couple of hours later his words met reverential hush as he described how Mr de Menezes was killed by seven shots to the head.

“Mr de Menezes was in fact killed instantly,” he said. “Indeed he can hardly have had any opportunity to appreciate what was happening.”

His words may have needed translating for the four Brazilians at the back of the court: the sombre silence that greeted them did not.

SEVEN SILKS IN SEARCH OF THE TRUTH

Sir Michael Wright, QC, 76, a former High Court judge, was appointed as a coroner specifically for this case.

Nicholas Hilliard, QC, 49, representing the Coroner. He was also one of the counsel appointed to represent the coroner at the inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.

Michael Mansfield, QC, 57, representing the de Menezes family. The doyen of civil rights lawyers, he acted for the family of Stephen Lawrence at the inquiry over his murder. He represented Mohammed al-Fayed at the Diana inquest.

Richard Horwell, QC, 54, representing the Metropolitan Police and the Commissioner. He is another veteran of the Princess inquest, also representing Scotland Yard.

Ian Stern, QC, 51, representing C2 and C12, the specialist firearms officers who fired the shots that killed Mr de Menezes. Mr Stern has previous experience at inquests acting for police marksmen involved in fatal shootings.

Patrick Gibbs, QC, 46, representing the police surveillance officers. An experienced criminal silk, Mr Gibbs has acted in trials on fraud, murder and terrorism.

David Perry, QC, 51, representing Deputy Assistant Commissioner Cressida Dick and Deputy Assistant Commissioner John McDowall, the officers in command of the police operation on July 22, 2005. The CPS asked him to advise it in the cash-for-honours inquiry and he led the prosecution of the Muslim cleric Abu Hamza for soliciting murder.

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