Alex Batty opens up about everyday experiences he finds 'weird' after being abducted by his mother

In 2017, 11-year-old Alex Batty flew to Spain for a holiday with his estranged mother, Melanie, and his grandfather, David, while his grandmother, Susan - his legal guardian - remained at home in the UK.

Much to Susan's dismay, the child didn't return home as planned the following week.

In fact, it would take six years for her to lay eyes on her grandson again.

Batty was abducted by Melanie, who lost custody of Alex to her own mother in the years prior, after which several national and international missing persons investigations were launched.

Batty was found wandering through the Pyrenees by a delivery driver in December 2023, having been walking for days after growing tired of the 'nomadic lifestyle' his mother and grandfather had lived across France and Spain.

Batty was found wandering through the Pyrenees (MATTHIEU RONDEL/AFP via Getty Images)

The now-20-year-old was reunited with Susan, and has lived with her in the UK ever since.

This week, Batty appeared on ITV's This Morning, where he not only confirmed that he's since become a parent himself, but reflected on all the aspects of life he's been forced to catch up with since leaving Melanie and David.

"You guys were just talking about the World Cup, weren't you?" he asked presenters Alison Hammond and Dermot O'Leary. "That's a big thing. I really want to get into football but it's so difficult because I didn't grow up with it, learning everything.

"So, I've just, basically, studied the World Cup as it was happening and tried to figure out all about that."

Batty continued: "It's all the small things that everyone goes on about - all the little references that everyone knows because they've been here. I do genuinely have to sit there and study it all.

Batty recalled the things he's struggled most to adjust to (ITV)

"It's all confusing - at least, it was. It's not so much now I've been back for three years, and it feels like I've been here a lifetime."

He went on to describe the most difficult aspect he's been forced to adjust to is seeing 'police cars and ambulances', adding, 'that's the weird thing for me'.

Batty also claimed he watched the Channel 4 series Educating Yorkshire as a child, which gave him an insight into 'normal' British schooling.

"After a while of moving around and living in Spain, I realised what I'm missing out on," he continued. "I used to watch that all the time, pretending that I was there. I'd been in primary school, I was in high school when I left.

"I knew what I was missing out on, and after a few years, after the fantasy stopped, it was a case of, 'This is how I should be living'.

Despite being off-grid for much of his childhood, Batty claimed he holds no grudge against his mother and grandfather, insisting he 'understood' their intentions.

Batty was 11 when he disappeared (PA)

He added that being a father himself has made him 'appreciate' his mother's actions.

"I'd do anything to protect [my daughter] and, obviously, my mum thinking that was protecting me, doing what she did, then I understand it," Batty claimed.