Honouring unsung heroes who make us all so proud
The city’s homegrown heroes speak to Charlotte Cox at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital in the run-up to The Mirror’s Pride of Britain Awards
BACK for the 19th year to honour the nation’s unsung heroes, the Pride of Britain awards recognise ordinary people doing amazing things.
And following the Arena attack last month, that sums up thousands of people who stepped up to offer help and support in Manchester.
Nominations are now open and the search is on.
The M.E.N. spoke to Lily Harrison, who was injured in the attack, and Peter-Marc Fortune, consultant in paediatric intensive care – and one of the first doctors to treat patients after the atrocity – about their unsung heroes.
It was a poignant moment as Lily Harrison, eight, and her mum Lauren Thorpe, 25, met the nurse who treated them after they were injured in the Arena bomb. And as nurse Emma Beasley, 23, declared brave Lily her ‘inspiration,’ Lily told her: “No, basically you are the inspiration.”
The three were reunited at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, which has benefitted from the Harrison family’s fundraising as they aim to give back.
Lily, from Heaton Moor, Stockport, who was wearing her Ariana Grande ears after meeting the star when she visited her ward, suffered a shrapnel wound, fractured rib and shoulder, and a bruised lung. But she is now on her way to recovery, and has even returned to PE classes at Didsbury Road Primary School.
Lily and her mum were keen to thank all the medics and the people of Manchester who helped them through their difficult recovery.
She said: “I want to say a big thank you to the doctors and nurses who helped me. It’s very nice to see Emma again.”
Mum Lauren, who was treated in the bed next to Lily, added: “It’s lovely to come back to see them, give them a cuddle and say thank you. They were so good keeping me on the children’s ward. It’s been overwhelming. It’s just people you don’t even know sending gifts for Lily, food and drinks.
“All the staff too. It was lovely that Lily was receiving gifts to say ‘get well soon’ off people we don’t know. There’s such a massive sense of community. Everyone has come together and everyone backs each other – there’s more love than hate and that’s what’s come out of it.”
Nurse Emma added: “What was sent in for the ward was crazy – pizzas from other countries, cards from all over the country. It’s been incredible. Everyone has been so strong. Lily and Lauren have been an inspiration.”
Also at the hospital, where Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham also paid a visit, were Lily’s dad Adam, 32, and her little sister Bella, two. Adam told how Lily ended up on the floor following the explosion, and how he ran back to scoop her up and carry her to safety. In running away, he also suffered a fractured ankle, which is still in a cast.
He said Lily had struggled to sleep when she first returned home - closing her eyes reminded her of when she lost consciousness after the attack. But she is now on the mend, he said.
The personal trainer and chef said there were many people who he would now consider heroes for the support they have given his family and all those affected by the atrocity.
He added: “It’s made me realise how much togetherness there is in the city – it makes me well up thinking about it. People sent us clothes, toiletry bags, the donations, even just text messages and social media enquiries. It all made the difference to us, it kept us going. So thank you.”