A talented DJ who was pronounced brain-dead after being beaten by thugs is making a miraculous recovery at the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability in Putney.

Sami Sanchez, 29, was set upon by a group of men in an unprovoked attack outside seOne nightclub in London Bridge, where he was resident DJ.

The injuries were so severe that part of his brain had to be removed, so doctors were stunned when he woke up from a three-month coma vowing to continue his music career.

His close friend Marcia Worrell, 32, said: “We thought we might have lost him. For the first week they said there was no brain activity, and it was very touch-and-go.

"At one point he twitched his finger and coughed a little. I think that was his way of saying, ‘I’m still here’.

“Sami’s brought himself through this. He’s a lovely man, this should not have happened to him.”

Mr Sanchez, from Baker Street in central London, was beaten up by a group of men in the early hours of Monday, May 4, while he stepped outside for a cigarette.

Half way though the attack, he friends arrived and chased the men off, checking Mr Sanchez was well before putting him in a taxi.

But at home he collapsed and was found the next day by a friend who was due to meet him for lunch.

Despite doctor’s warnings that he might never wake up, he is now learning how to talk again and move his limbs.

On Sunday, he joined friends at Blend in Wandsworth High Street for the launch party of his double A-side single, Dirty Salsa/Dirty Trumpet.

Ms Worrell, from Earlsfield, said: “We don’t know who they were, or why they did it to him. It was probably jealousy.

“Sami’s proof that there’s hope. You have to keep on fighting.

”Music is his life. He doesn’t have another ambition apart from to be the best that he can be.”

* Police arrested a 27-year-old man in connection with the brutal attack on Sami Sanchez last Tuesday.

Ali Abdul-hamid, of Lanark Road in Maida Vale, north London, was arrested on February 23 and charged with inflicting grevous bodily harm (GBH) the next day.

He appeared at Tower Bridge Magistrate’s Court and was remanded in custody to appear at the Inner London Crown Court on a date to be fixed.

Police were not called to the incident at the time, but were later told three men were involved.

If you have information which could help police, call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

THE HOSPITAL: Specialists at the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability in Putney have been working around the clock for 10 months to help Mr Sanchez recover from his brain injury.

Although he has complete awareness and can think properly, he has to re-learn how to send the messages to his muscles to move and talk.

Using the latest technology, speech therapists, occupational therapists and rehabilitation consultants are helping him to communicate with friends and family.

Newly-developed sensors are able to detect the smallest of finger movements, allowing patients to type out words and sentences using special computer equipment.

Meanwhile, the patient relearns how to use their vocal cords and form their lips to produce different sounds.

Opened in 1985, the hospital's Acquired Brain Injury Service became the first of its kind in the UK.

It was extensively refurbished in March 2000, and is now a leading national inpatient service specialising in assessment, disability management and rehabilitation.

In the European Union, brain injury accounts for one million hospital admissions per year, with around 50 per cent being caused by road crashes.