Lee Rigby's mother speaks of moment she realised he had been murdered Fusilier Rigby's mother and stepfather saw news of the attack on television Lyn Rigby learnt it was her son when four men in black suits came to house Ian Rigby said they took pride in the way their son had 'united the country' The 25-year-old soldier was murdered outside Woolwich barracks on 22 May Today Michael Adebolajo, 28, and Michael Adebowale, 22, were both found guilty of the Fusilier's murder Lee Rigby's devastated mother today told how she knew her son had been murdered when her doorbell rang after she'd spent the day watching live television reports of the Woolwich attack. Lyn Rigby said she tried and failed to telephone her only son while watching reports from the scene, and only knew it was him when the doorbell rang and she saw four men in black suits at her front door. Devastated: Lee Rigby's stepfather Ian and mother Lyn said their murdered son had 'united the country', but added that they had 'never felt pain' like they did now Lee Rigby, who had a two-year-old son, Jack, was attacked in south-east London on 22 May this year Fusilier Rigby was the eldest of five children brought up in Greater Manchester, and fiercely protective of his siblings Sara, 24, Chelsea, 21, Courtney, 11, and Amy, eight. Guilty of murdering Fusilier Lee Rigby: Michael Adebolajo, 28, left, and Michael Adebolawe, 22, right 'His understanding is that his dad's in the sky': Fusilier Rigby's two-year-old son, Jack, has been left without a father The Rigbys said if they could ask Adeolajo and Adebowale anything, it would be to ask them why. Mr Rigby said: 'Why? You'd want to know what could possibly be in their brains that could make them do something like this. Maybe it would make me understand a little bit. 'It doesn't make any sense that he was just walking down a road and this happened to him. It could have been anybody. The parents insisted their son's killers were not acting in the name of Islam, and said they should not hold religion responsible. Mr Rigby said: 'It was two individuals - it wasn't anything to do with religion. Their views are not the Islam views - it's just their private views. 'You can't hold religion responsible for their views - they're using religion as an excuse for whatever they've been brainwashed with.' Mrs Rigby added: 'Their aim was to divide the community, to cause conflict, to set people against each other, but they haven't succeeded, have they? 'It seems to be that Lee's death has actually united the community.' Her husband said: 'Lee's death has united the country. People wanted to meet us and show their support. 'He's become a figurehead to unite the country and bring people back together.' The couple said people had thanked them for 'giving the country Lee', saying his shocking death had brought their families back together, reuniting relations who had not spoken to each other for years. Mr Rigby said: 'It shocked the nation and it made Lee part of everybody's life, not just ours. 'Lee was taken to everybody's hearts like a son - he became part of everybody's families. Everybody felt what we were feeling, and still are. Lee Rigby's sister, Sara, said she had told her daughter Ella, right, that 'special people' are taken from us early Minutes from death: Wearing his Help for Heroes sweatshirt, Fusilier Lee Rigby was murdered soon after he was caught on CCTV Mrs Rigby said her son had dreamt of joining the Army since he was four, saying there was 'never any other career he wanted to do'. She said Fusilier Rigby's family supported his career choice, and described how relieved they were when he returned from Afghanistan to be posted in Woolwich. She said: 'I thought he'd be safe. You rest up easy - they're not in the war zone and back home, doing a job that he loved doing. Nothing ever enters your head. Six months after their son was struck down in the busy London street, the Rigbys said they still found life 'very difficult' without him. Mrs Rigby said of the early days: 'It was just like non-existing. There was no living, no eating. Our lives will never be the same again. We are not a whole family any more. Private Lee Rigby had dreamt of joining the Army since he was four, and his family supported his career choice Father and soldier: The Fusilier, seen centre taking part in a parade through Hounslow, left a two-year-old son, Jack Crying, she added: 'Itâ€™s brought the family closer together, weâ€™re a lot closer now than we were before but when something like this happens...I'll never get Lee back. A piece of me went when Lee went. Mr Rigby said: 'A big chunk of the calming influence and humour has gone out of the family. Lee had a terrible sense of humour. His mother laughed as she added: 'He was quite proud of that.' But Mr Rigby said: 'Thereâ€™s no understanding, we just canâ€™t understand. You go into shock, I think. It just doesnâ€™t make sense in your brain - six months later and itâ€™s still so raw. We just have to try and get back to normal. I donâ€™t know how you do it, because we are still struggling to make sense of it. Something that would give you some peace of mind, I suppose. They said they were trying to rebuild their lives, 'learning to smile again a little bit', and sharing happy memories of their son. Heartbreaking: Lee Rigby's small son Jack attended his funeral in a t-shirt that read 'My daddy, my hero' Talking about how they start to live their lives again, Mrs Rigby said: 'With great difficulty. We have the two little ones at home as well - youâ€™re still a mum to them, of course. Iâ€™ve never felt pain like I do now. She added: 'As much as I'd love to just curl up in the corner and, you know... Youâ€™re still a mum to them. You just have to get on. Put that mask on during the day and try and get through. Little steps at a time. I've never felt pain like I do now. It's there constantly, every day.' They said that their grandson, Fusilier Rigby's two-year-old son Jack, was 'all we have left of Lee now' and said he was 'going to be one spoiled little boy.' Mr Rigby said: 'His understanding is that his Dadâ€™s in the sky and that's basically all he understands.' Fusilier Rigby's fiancee, Aimee West, 22, sobbed as she visited the murder scene in Woolwich earlier this year Fallen hero: Fusilier Rigby's coffin was carried from Bury parish church in Greater Manchester after his funeral Jack, who is described by his grandparents as 'the double of Lee' when his father was the same age, attended his father's funeral in a t-shirt saying 'My daddy, my hero'. The Rigbys said they could not remember most of that day, describing it as 'just a blur', and said now they wanted to make sure 'this situation wouldn't happen to another family'. Mr Rigby said: 'No matter what happens, nothing will bring Lee back.' Fusilier Rigby's sister, Sara, said she had told her young daughter, Ella, that her 'Uncle Lee' had stopped working and now lived 'in the sky'. She said: 'I told her normally people donâ€™t stop working until theyâ€™re quite old. But some people are really special and they have to go that little bit sooner. To everybody else he was the most selfless person - he would do anything for anybody. He was strong. 'We have to stay strong': Relatives and loved ones of Lee Rigby arriving at court today including, from left, fiancee Aimee West, stepfather Ian Rigby, sister Sara McClure and mother, Lyn Rigby, in white scarf 'But he wasn't really. He rang me not long ago. He was quite upset. He wanted to go back to Afghanistan and he was going to request a post and I talked him out of it and now I wish I hadn't.' Mrs Rigby told BBC's Panorama that Fusilier Rigby came within inches of being killed while in Afghanistan. She said: 'He did say once, they'd just had a bullet fly past them and it'd missed him by inches.' Mr Rigby said: 'It hit the picture frame at the side of his bed and smashed the picture frame.' Mrs Rigby added: 'He phoned home straight after that. Just said that he missed us and that he loved us. She said she would not want anybody to go through what they have suffered. 'I wouldn't wish anybody, whoever they are, to go through the same pain of what they put Lee through. What they put the family through, having to sit and watch what they did to our Lee. The bereaved mother said her son's killers should never be released from prison. 'I don't think they should be able to come out and walk on the streets again.' Mr Rigby added: 'You'd love to say you'd like to see the same thing happen to them as what they'd done, but in this country, you live in a democracy and you believe in the justice of this country.' The full interview with Lee Rigby's family will be shown on ITV News programmes at 1.30pm, 6.30pm and 10pm today Protective older brother, devoted father and loving son: The Lee Rigby his family knew Born in Crumpsall, Manchester, in July 1987, the eldest of five children, Lee Rigby was fiercely protective of his four younger sisters, Sara, 24, Chelsea, 21, Courtney, 11, and Amy, eight, who all idolised their 'hero' big brother. The family grew up together at their home on the huge Langley estate in Middleton, a 1950s council estate built for the slum-clearances in post-war Manchester, four miles to the south. Friends and neighbours remember a 'sport mad lad' who was likeable, quiet but confident. First child and adored only son: Lee Rigby was born in Crumpsall, Manchester, in July 1987 Fusilier Rigby, who attended Queen Elizabeth High School in Middleton, could have a fiery temper as a teenager, his step-father said, and was a 'typical lad' and at times 'daft as a brush'. Aged 16, he was shot in the face with an air rifle, as he walked home from a nearby chip shop - a gang of youths hanging around nearby thought to be the culprits. After finishing his education he got a job and was twice unsuccessful in applying for the Army but he sought help for coping with his dyslexia and got in on the third attempt. His dream fulfilled, he loved his job, especially the pomp and ceremony of public duties, proudly wearing his red tunic as a drummer outside Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and the Tower of London. In 2006, after successful completion of his infantry training course at Catterick, Mr Rigby was selected to be a member of the Corps of Drums and posted to 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, also known as the Second Fusiliers or 2 RRF. Proud father: Lee Rigby, seen here with stepfather Ian Rigby, left, and son Jack, now two, right 'Riggers' as he became known, knew nothing of drumming and his love of boy-band Westlife was a source of amusement to his fellow Fusiliers. But his thirst for life, sense of mischief and good humour made him a popular recruit. He married Rebecca Metcalfe, a recruitment consultant, at St Anne's Church, in Southowram, West Yorkshire, while based at Catterick in the early days of his Army career. His first foreign posting was as a machine gunner in Cyprus, before he returned to the UK in 2008 to live with his wife in Hounslow Barracks, west London. In April 2009, he was deployed on operations for the first time to Helmand province, Afghanistan, where he served as a member of the Fire Support Group at Patrol Base Woqab. His unit took part in numerous firefights with the Taliban and regularly had to patrol across ground strewn with improvised explosive devices. Fusilier Rigby, who dreamt of becoming a solider from the age of four, was also a doting father to his son His courage was tested every day, but his commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Jim Taylor said: 'He was not found wanting.' On returning to the UK, he completed a second tour of public duties and then moved with his wife to the battalion based at Celle, Germany, as part of the Small Scale Contingency Battle Group. In 2011, his son, Jack, was born and Drummer Rigby became a devoted and doting father, collecting teddy bears dressed in army regalia from across the world for his son. The same year, he took up a recruiting post in London, a job he was considered ideally suited for, combining his soldiering ability and charisma coupled with a cheeky outgoing personality that naturally endeared him to potential recruits. Through the Army he met and proposed to a second woman, Aimee West, who was serving with the Royal Military Police. Wife and son: Rebecca Rigby, pictured here before her husband's funeral, gave birth to the soldier's only child in 2011 Lee Rigby's girlfriend Aimee West, centre in striped shirt, was engaged to marry him His mother, Lyn Rigby has said her son went through some personal crises in his life and he always turned to her for support, sometimes in tears, before they ended up laughing over his troubles. His wife Rebecca is understood to have been with her parents Susan and Paul Metcalfe in Halifax, west Yorkshire, as news of her husband's death broke. She said she was 'proud to be his wife' and he was due to travel north on the weekend after he died to continue their life as a family. Meanwhile Miss West is reportedly planning to quit the Army over her devastation at losing the fellow soldier she expected to marry. Slain: Lee Rigby was murdered outside barracks in Woolwich, south east London, on 22 May this year For Lee Rigby, his son and family always came first and he had an especially strong bond to his mother, who split from his father, Philip McClure, and later married Ian Rigby in 2006, with Lee taking his step-father's name. His last text to his mother, sent on Mother's Day, said she was a 'one in a million mum' and called her his 'best friend'. Today she spoke of the moment she learnt of her only son's death, saying: 'I opened the door and my world just crashed.'