Michelle Kiss

Michelle Kiss, aged 45, from Whalley, Lancashire was killed in the Manchester Arena bombing.

On 22 May 2017, at approximately 10:31 p.m., Salman Abedi, a 22-year-old British-Libyan man born in Manchester to Libyan parents, carried out a suicide bombing at the Manchester Arena in England at the end of an Ariana Grande concert. 

Abedi, a UK citizen who had recently returned from Libya, detonated a TATP-based nail bomb packed with shrapnel in the City Room foyer, killing 22 people (including children) and injuring 1,017 others (239 with physical injuries). 

His younger brother, Hashem Abedi (also British-Libyan), helped source materials and coordinate the attack from Libya; he was later convicted in the UK of 22 counts of murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy to cause an explosion, receiving a life sentence with a minimum term of 55 years. 

Michelle Kiss was killed while waiting in the foyer of the arena to pick up her daughter, who escaped uninjured.

Her husband Tony said their family had been to “many” concerts at the venue, adding: “How sad to think that a place that had brought so much joy to my family would be the place forever to take away that joy.”

He said she had “wanted to make every day count” and had “an aura of love and positivity that glowed with each of her smiles”.

Her parents Mick and Christine said she had been “loving, caring and thoughtful” and “the hub of our family”, adding: “She was not only our daughter but also our best friend.”

Rest in peace Michelle. You will not be forgotten.