Missing Brit boy found alive in France after six years explains what he did while captive

The British boy who was kidnapped by his own mother and spent six years living 'off-the-grid' revealed how he was able to keep himself occupied.

In October 2017, Alex Batty vanished after travelling with his mother to Malaga in Spain, after they failed to return home from a family holiday.

His mother, Melanie Batty, did not have custody of the then 11-year-old at the time, but had been given permission to take him abroad for a holiday between 30 September and 8 October.

However, Melanie and her father, Alex's grandfather, had actually taken the youngster to live on a commune, with the group travelling across Spain, Morocco and southwest France.

For the next six years, Alex's whereabouts would remain unknown until he was discovered walking towards the city of Toulouse by a delivery driver.

Alex will tell his story in an upcoming BBC documentary (ITV)

He was finally able to return to the UK and reunite with his grandmother in December 2023, with a police investigation subsequently being launched into his mother and grandfather.

The investigation was later dropped in January 2025, after police concluded they had determined there was 'no realistic chance of prosecution'.

Now 20 years old, Alex is set to share his story in an upcoming documentary with the BBC, titled Kidnapped by My Mum.

What did Alex Batty do while he was living with his mother?

Alex initially spoke about his experience with ITV in 2024, sitting down with Good Morning Britain alongside his grandmother and legal guardian, Susan Caruana.

Explaining how he came to the conclusion that life with his mother and grandfather 'wasn't the best for me', Alex told Richard Madeley and Susanna Reid that he was mostly surrounded by adults.

"In the past six years, I'd met one, maybe two, people my own age that I made friends with," he said.

Describing his overall experience as 'boring' and 'isolating', Alex revealed that he'd spend most of his days reading to pass the time.

"I read a lot of books," he said. "Movies and books, but mostly books."

Alex revealed that he'd found solace in the fantasy world, adding that JK Rowling's Harry Potter series was his favourite to read.

"You did the classic thing to escape into books," replied Madeley.

Alongside reading, Alex had also undertaken regular construction projects to earn a living on the commune after turning 14.

Alex also explained why he didn't try to come back to the UK earlier, explaining that he didn't want his mother and grandfather to be sent to prison.

"That's why I didn't come home sooner. All I worried about was them getting locked up," he said.

Kidnapped by My Mum will be available on BBC Three and iPlayer on 13 May.