Husband pays tribute to ‘my childhood sweetheart, my wife, my soul mate’ in Manchester bomb inquiry

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The husband of a victim of the Manchester Arena bomb attack has described how he lost ‘my girlfriend, my childhood sweetheart, my wife, my friend, my soul mate.’

Mother-of-three, Michelle Kiss, 45, from Whalley in Lancashire, died when she went to pick up her daughter from an Ariana Grande concert at the venue in May 2017.

She was one of 22 people killed as a result of the blast.

On the night of the attack she was 20 metres away from the bomber as she waited in the City Room for her daughter to come out of the concert with her friend.

Her daughter survived, but the inquiry was told how she found Michelle lying unconscious on the ground with a head wound and was ‘understandably upset and distressed.’

Today, Michelle’s husband, Tony Kiss, told an inquiry into the bombing that Michelle was ‘just being a mum’ by waiting for their daughter.

Tony said: ‘Michelle died but my daughter survived. Amazingly, and so, so thankfully, she was physically unscathed.

‘However, the horrors that she must have witnessed in the aftermath of the explosion are fully known only to herself.

‘I like to believe though that in their last moments together she brought some comfort to her mum.

‘I also like to think of her, at the moment of their parting, as her mum’s little guardian angel because I know that Michelle became her guardian angel in that very same moment.’

He described his wife as ‘my girlfriend, my childhood sweetheart, my wife, my friend, my soul mate’ of 30 years.

Tony added that Michelle had ‘always been my guiding light from the very first moment I met her’ when they were 15 and were introduced by a mutual friend.

He said: ‘This moment threw my life and my children’s lives into a darkness that I feared would last an eternity and unless you’ve lived this life, it’s impossible for another to know.

‘Memories do provide real moments of comfort, but sadness comes when we realise there can be no more with Michelle.

‘I’m now mum and dad, and I’m doing my best, but I worry that it can’t ever be good enough.

‘How can it ever be good enough for my children, without their mum, without Michelle? How can it be?’

Tony added: ‘I miss her smile, I miss her voice but, most of all, I miss her beautiful presence and her warm embrace.’ 

He also praised the ‘coming together’ of the people of Manchester, adding: ‘They demonstrated in the most incredible way, that choosing love can be the more powerful force.

‘For this, I say thank you to the wonderful Manchester people for restoring my faith in humanity during the hardest time of my life.’

Michelle’s parents Mick and Christine described how she became ‘inseparable’ from Tony after they met aged 15 and said that she was so close to her sister, Nicole, that they went on each other’s honeymoons.

She was a devoted mother who ‘absolutely loved her children beyond measure’ and took the boys to football, karate and basketball.

She spent hours taking her daughter to the Stagebox Academy in Manchester and driving her to auditions and rehearsals 

Tony and Michelle bought their first house together in their early 20s and were married on the beach in Barbados in 1995, at the same time as her cousin, Gary.

Michelle worked for the Department of Social Security in Blackburn for a while but she was a ‘natural homemaker,’ Tony said.  

Over the years, Michelle visited Manchester Arena many times with their children to watch concerts and events, including seeing Take That, her favourite band, six times.

‘How sad to think, that a place that brought so much joy to my family, would be the place, forever, to take away that joy,’ Tony said.

His comments come after the inquiry heard from the best friend of an 14-year-old maths prodigy who was killed in the same attack. 

Schoolgirl Nell Jones was one of 22 people killed in the attack at an Ariana Grande concert in May 2017.

Nell had gone to the concert with her friend, Freya Lewis, who was seriously injured in the attack.

The teenager is said to have had a wide circle of friends, who included Freya, but was one of a close group of four who were ‘always together in school and out.’

One of her friends, Olivia, who met her at primary school, said in a statement read to the inquiry: ‘Nell was the best friend anybody could wish for, always wanting to help people out. She was very confident too, while I was the shy one.

‘There were times when we didn’t have to say anything to each other, we could just look at each other and burst out laughing. No one else would understand but we would know.’

Olivia added: ‘She was the one I could share anything with. If I searched the world over I would never find someone as loyal, caring, funny and full of life,’ Olivia said in a statement read to the inquiry.

‘She was one in a million and she will live in my heart for ever. One word I would use to describe her is irreplaceable, she will be my best friend for ever.’

Farmer’s daughter, Nell Jones from Goostrey in Cheshire, excelled in English and maths and was placed on the gifted and talented register at school.

When she was 13, she took part in the Kangaroos school maths challenge and was awarded gold.

She was also known for her love of ballet, contemporary dance and musical theatre, and enjoyed the music of Ed Sheeran and Adele.

Brought up on a turkey farm, one of her favourite things was becoming a member of the Knutsford Young Farmers, her family said. 

Alex, another of Nell’s close friends, said she had ‘never met a girl who was so passionate and positive about life.’

She described her friend as ‘intelligent and organised’ and said she ‘loved everything from maths to art and drama.’

They enjoyed Christmas markets, skating in the park, going to the cinema and the young farmers club.

‘Our little loving friendship groups had never been happier, I could never have imagined the death of our small village girl who grew up on the family turkey farm would become world news. I feel very honoured to tell people I knew Nell on such a personal level.’

Nell’s brother, Sam, read the tributes at the inquiry into the bombing, saying: ‘Although she excelled at school, Nell was always very modest about her ability and always thought of others as being far clever than her.

‘It was on the stage where everyone really saw Nell shine. Nell loved entertaining others with her bright, bubbly vibrant personality she put her heart and soul into every performance she did, giving her audience plenty to remember.’

In the tribute, her parents, Jayne and Earnie (CORR) said she was always keen to learn new things from her first steps and tying her shoe laces to learning to ride a bike, ‘she would persevere relentlessly until she mastered it.’

At school ‘she hated any form of unkindness and would protect her friends to the hilt,’ and she ‘soaked up everything she was taught like a sponge,’ they said.

Her brother said Nell ‘lit up our days with her energy and passion for life’ adding: ‘Every day was an adventure to Nell and we were all carried along with her.

‘The thought of the years ahead without her in our lives is truly unbearable and I have no words to describe the pain and grief which we feel each day but those 14 wonderful years that we shared together and the memories we made were truly special.

‘We loved Nell with all our hearts and we always will.’

Mrs Bebbington, her primary school teacher, described her as a ‘fabulous role model to look up to’ and a ‘wonderfully talented girl who showed an aptitude for so many things.’

Her English teacher at Holme Chapel Comprehensive School remembered her as a ‘human being with a big heart’ who ‘worked hard and surrounded herself with friends who had the same work ethic and thirst for life.’

‘Those qualities would undoubtedly have taken Nell far, unfortunately we will never know just how far,’ her brother said.

Her drama teacher said her ‘big heart was matched with a big personality and a big talent’ and her music teacher said she ‘stood out as a star right from the start.’

‘She had a smile and a quiet confidence that lit up any stage, a wonderful, caring young girl with an infectious smile,’ the teacher added.

Sir John Saunders, the chairman of the inquiry, said: ‘All of your family have every reason to be so proud of Nell.

‘What comes over most strongly is the sense of loss everyone feels over her death and my overwhelming impression is, what a loss.’

The commemorative part of the hearings will conclude this week.

The public inquiry, chaired by Sir John Saunders, is to examine the background to the attack by suicide bomber Salman Abedi and the response of the emergency services and will conclude next spring.