GCSE joy for girls hurt in Manchester bombing
TWO girls injured in last year’s Manchester terror attack have passed all their GCSEs.
Millie Robson and Laura Anderson had surgery after being caught in the blast at an Ariana Grande concert.
A lone Islamist suicide bomber detonated a shrapnelladen homemade bomb as people left the gig, killing 22.
The 16-year-olds sat their exams in May – a year on from the attack.
Millie’s mother, Marie, said: “They passed all their GCSEs with A to C grades. Millie struggled in maths and thought she wouldn’t pass but she did.
“For me it’s testament to everything they have been through. They did the exams when it was the anniversary and that’s the special part of it.
“I’m totally proud and relieved for Millie more than anything. They put the work in and got what they wanted out.”
Hours before the blast at Manchester Arena on May 22, 2017, best pals Millie and Laura, from Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, met their pop idol Ariana.
They were treated to a VIP night after winning a competition by producing a short video about spending a day with the 23-year-old singer.
Millie and Laura were on their way out of the venue when the bomb was detonated by Salman Abedi, 22, – leaving them wounded in the foyer.
Both teenagers suffered shrapnel wounds and had to have operations.
Millie alone had eight injuries, mostly in her legs as well as in her arm and eye, and spent almost two weeks in hospital.
During her convalescence she was visited by the Queen.
Millie and Laura returned to the city the following month for the One Love Manchester charity concert where the pair met their idol again.
More than a year on they continue to live with the mental and emotional effects of the atrocity.
Despite this and in a show of solidarity, the brave girls – in the middle of their GCSE exams – journeyed back to Manchester on May 22 for a memorial service at the city’s cathedral.
Christine Forsyth, head teacher at Woodham Academy in Newton Aycliffe, praised the girls. She said: “Well done to both Millie and Laura. They worked very hard and, given that the exams were around the anniversary of the incident, I’m full of admiration for their courage and determination. I am really proud of them.” Now both girls are about to start studying for their A-levels at Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College in Darlington next month.
‘It’s testament to everything they’ve been through’