Alex Tyson: Tragedy of 19-year-old Preston North End fan 'with the world at his feet' who killed himself on the M6

Alexander Tyson, known as Alex, died in the early hours of September 4, 2022, when his white Ford Fiesta struck a crash barrier on the southbound carriageway of the M6, at the junction 31 exit onto the A59.

READ a full tribute to Alex here

The tragedy unfolded after the teenager rowed with his girlfriend over text message. The nature of the disagreement was not revealed to the court but Alex’s inquest heard he grew increasingly distressed and try to call her more than 150 times.

His family say that the BAE Systems apprentice "had the world at his feet" and momentarily became "emotionally out of control".

They hope his story can help other people experiencing similar situations to realise how best to deal with their emotions.

Background

Preston Coroner's Court heard that Alex's girlfriend of 12 months was on holiday in Tenerife with friends, and on the evening of September 3, he had spent the night in Preston city centre, socialising with friends, before returning home at around 2am.

Unable to contact his girlfriend, Alex did manager to speak to one of her friends on the same holiday, and shortly afterwards left his home in Fulwood and got into his car.

At 2.59am he joined the M55 in an easterly direction headed towards the M6, and during this time repeatedly tried to make phone calls.

He pulled onto the hard shoulder to have a conversation with his girlfriend's friend, during which he is reported to have said: "I'm not going to be here in the morning."

The woman didn't believe Alex and said the call ended a short time later.

Alex then continued heading south on the M6 and sent a message to his girlfriend which read: "I love you and always will. I'm on the motorway and will see you in the next life."

Bullnose

One minute later, CCTV shows him appear to line up his car towards the 'bullnose' of the sliproad, put on his main beam headlight, and drive directly at a barrier.

Data recorded on the car's black box revealed that the car had accelerated towards the bullnose, and at the time of impact had been travelling at 83mph.

The car hit the barrier and then two street lights before flipping and rolling.

Alex was ejected from the vehicle and came to rest around 20 yards away in the grass, having suffered fatal injuries.

Tragically he was found by his father Peter an hour later, who had been worried by the lack of Alex's car on the drive, and used the Find My iPhone app to track down the device's location.

A collision investigation report showed there had been no sudden loss of control of the vehicle, and that at the time of the collision, Alex's phone wasn't in use and wasn't a contributory factor.

The road had been dry, visibility was clear, and the carriageway was dark, but the Fiesta's headlights were working. There were no visible signs of braking.

"Unique sense of humour"

Alex's mum Caroline said Alex was a "healthy and well-balanced" young adult, who lived at home with his mum, dad, and dog Reggie.

He had a lot of interests, including a variety of sports, but particularly football, travelling the length and breadth of the country following Preston North End. Club officials, including chairman Peter Ridsdale attended Alex’s funeral.

CLICK here to read what ex-Liverpool and PNE defender Mark Lawrenson said about Alex

She said he was a "caring, compassionate and loving young man" and had "a unique sense of humour with the ability to make people smile."

Cause of death

Coroner Chris Long gave Alex's cause of death was given as head injuries.

He said that toxicology reports showed that Alex had alcohol in his blood at 102mg per decilitre, and there was evidence of a small amount of cocaine use in the hours prior to his death.

He said: "He was intoxicated to an extent, but not so intoxicated that it would stop him forming an intent."

He said: "It is clear on the face of the evidence, that there is no history showing intent of suicide.

"The evidence tells me there has been a disagreement which has upset Alex on the evening in question. He has become more and more desperate and more and more upset."

He said that he was satisfied that Alex had taken deliberate steps, and had said in text messages or in conversation that he intended to end his life.

He said: "I have to consider what Alex intended in that exact moment given the speed he drove into the barrier.

"At that particular speed, my preliminary view is that he intended to end his life."

Mr Long recorded a conclusion of suicide.

"Emotionally broken"

Mr Tyson's family say Alex was not depressed, but "emotionally broken" because of the events of that night.

Dad Peter said: "It was his first girlfriend and he loved her. He came up with a permanent solution to a temporary problem. He just wanted things to go away."

He added: "He was a happy boy, he'd been to Warehouse nightclub, he'd booked tickets to see Coldplay and had a holiday booked.

"He wasn't going anywhere.

"What happened was he became emotionally out of control and it was the perfect storm."

He added: "It was too much for him to cope with and didn't have the tools to sit back and think, 'what's going on here?'

"He had a nice home, nice school, BAE; he wasn't used to fractious relationships."

Speaking after the inquest, Alex's family urged anyone else in similar distress to know the best people to contact and reflect on how the situation will feel in hours or days to come.

Peter Tyson added: "Every day people are waking up and carrying on with their lives. But we wake up with a wrecking ball through ours."

• Anyone who need help or support can also contact the Samaritans on 116 123 or visit their website.