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Alex's mum abducted him as a boy. Now he's ready to talk to her again
Key takeaways
- Alex, from Oldham, was declared missing by his grandmother in 2017, aged 11, after his mother and grandfather abducted him while on holiday in Spain, before moving to France.
- His mother, Melanie, who was not his legal guardian and was heavily influenced by conspiracy theories, told him to throw away his passport.
- In a new BBC documentary, Alex, now 20, retraced his years in isolation, which at one point saw him living in a tent, sometimes eating just one meal a day and carrying out manual labour for money.
Why this matters: a developing story that could shape the day's news cycle.
George Sandemanand Ellen Kirwin Watch: Alex Batty talks about coming to terms with what his mother did Alex Batty, who was abducted as a child and taken to live abroad by his mother, has contacted her for the first time since his return to the UK in 2023.
Alex, from Oldham, was declared missing by his grandmother in 2017, aged 11, after his mother and grandfather abducted him while on holiday in Spain, before moving to France.
His mother, Melanie, who was not his legal guardian and was heavily influenced by conspiracy theories, told him to throw away his passport. They then lived part of the time off-grid, and he did not attend school.
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