Alex Batty, who has filmed a new BBC documentary Kidnapped By My Mum, went missing from Oldham in 2017Press Association and Ashlie Blakey Live and breaking news reporter
06:55, 13 May 2026
Alex Batty(Image: Andy Stenning/Sunday Mirror)
Alex Batty has told of his ‘complicated’ relationship with his mother after she allegedly ‘abducted’ him at aged just 11.
Alex, now 20, went missing from Oldham in 2017 after going on holiday to Spain with his mum Melanie Batty, who was not his legal guardian, and his grandfather David Batty. They embarked on an ‘alternative’ nomadic lifestyle, often with basic amenities, regularly moving around Spain and France.
The teenager fled in December 2023, six years after his initial disappearance, and was found after walking four days through France. In the years since, he has returned to normal life in Oldham with his grandmother Susan Caruana, who was his legal guardian at the time of his disappearance in 2017.
Click here to get the biggest stories straight to your inbox in our Daily Newsletter
Alex has now filmed a new BBC documentary Kidnapped By My Mum, in which he retraced the journey he took across Spain and France. In the document, he told how he was ‘mad’ that authorities did not do more to step in.
He said: “My relationship with my mum is such a complicated thing. I’m annoyed at what she did … the experiences I missed out on, my lack of education. But speaking to all these people about my mum opened up my eyes to why she did what she did.
“This entire trip has reconnected me to my mum and grandad, and made me want to build that bridge again. Hopefully one day I’ll be able to get to the point where I can go and see them and have an enjoyable time rather than have my mum push things down my throat like she used to do.”
He told the programme during their time staying on campsites in France in 2022 he would eat one meal a day. He said: “My mum would tell me constantly, ‘you need to do spiritual work’, ‘you need to do inner work’, but when I was 15, I started really thinking for myself.
“I’d try and find my own answers and when I did, if they differed in any way, it would start a row. It was constant battles, constant arguments, constant yelling.
Alex Batty went missing age 11(Image: PA)
“So, she kicked me out of her campervan. I was living in a tent for a few months whilst my mum had this really nice warm campervan next to me.”
One campsite owner told the programme she called French social services about the family but was told they could not do anything because Mr Batty was foreign and they did not have his true identity. Mr Batty said: “You think that would make them want to come more. I’m so mad, so mad, that no-one did anything.”
Last year, Greater Manchester Police said Alex’s mother and grandfather would not face criminal proceedings following his disappearance. Police said there was no realistic chance of a prosecution.
Both Alex and his grandmother had previously said they do not want to see his mum and grandpa jailed over the suspected child abduction probe. According to the documentary, since his return to the UK Mr Batty passed his maths and English GCSEs, and became father to a baby girl in January.
Programme-makers said Mr Batty’s mother was invited to respond to allegations but declined, while his grandfather was contacted but no response was received. The French social services bureau, France Enfance Protegee, told the BBC they could not comment on Alex’s specific case due to confidentiality.
Kidnapped By My Mum is on BBC Three at 9pm and BBC One at 10.40pm on Wednesday. It will also be available to stream on BBC iPlayer.