‘I was the happiest I had ever been, now I’m stood on a road with my life shattered’
A year ago today, Calvin Buckley and his partner of three years - pregnant and beaming Frankie Julia Hough - proudly hosted a gender reveal party.
Surrounding by their family and friends, Calvin recalls cooking mountains of food for the celebration. It was, he said, the happiest he had ever been. They revealed to tears, applause and pink balloons that Frankie was expecting a girl - Calvin's first child and a little sister for her two boys.
"I was so happy to become a father," says Calvin, 41. "I remember it being a busy day. There was lots of food. Family were around and people were really happy. Me and Frankie were the happiest we had ever been. She was over the moon and so were her mum and dad. They had grandsons, but now a granddaughter.
"Frankie had two sons, and a daughter would have completed it."
Tragically, less than a week later, Calvin's world and the lives of their families were shattered by a selfish, show-off, speeding driver who had been filming himself behind the wheel while reaching speeds of up to 123mph Frankie, who was 38, was killed in a horror motorway crash that also claimed the life of their unborn daughter[2] - Neeve.
On Tuesday - 12 months on from the joyous celebration of new life - Calvin is standing at the side of the East Lancashire Road in Swinton[3], Salford[4], fronting a powerful new road safety campaign. He says he wants to change minds and a culture that believes driving while on a mobile phone is acceptable and without risk.
Frankie from Chadderton[5], Oldham[6], died in the crash on the M66 in Bury[7] in May last year after Adil Iqbal, 22 when he was jailed, lost control of his father's powerful BMW M140i. Iqbal, a boxing coach from Accrington, Lancashire, had filmed himself reaching speeds of up to 123mph before the BMW crashed into her Skoda Fabia,[8] which she had pulled over onto the hard shoulder because of a punctured tyre. She was 17-weeks pregnant.
Frankie's son Tommy, then aged nine; and nephew Tobias, four at the time, were passengers. All were wearing seatbelts, but suffered serious injuries from which they are still recovering, Calvin said. Frankie's two-year-old Rocky, who was strapped into a child seat, was miraculously unharmed.
Frankie with sons Tommy, right, and Rocky, second left, with nephew Tobias, left (Image: PA)
"This time last year was probably the happiest time of our life," Calvin said. "And now I am stood at the roadside, here, talking about issues like this. I am now passionate about road safety. I want to make a difference."
Calvin, a PE teacher and gym coach from Oldham, is in the process of setting up Frankie and Neeve's Road Safety Academy. They hope to go into schools, educate youngsters and breed a new mentality around driving.
"Speeding is a crime, and so is using your mobile phone at the wheel," said Calvin, when asked if he believes attitudes will ever change on our roads.
"I do not think that you can ever end all crime, but what you can do is to try and educate people and create a society with more morals and respect and responsibility. You can reduce it by cultural change. This generation seem to think that the rules do not apply to them.
Calvin with GMP Inspector Jamie Buchanan in Swinton (Image: TfGM/MEN)
"We just accept driving with a phone, looking down to change a music song on a mobile, looking at a map, sending a text message, video calling. It is taken for granted these days.
"In Frankie's case, it was an extreme use of a mobile phone. He was filming himself. But the use of mobile phones at the wheel is a huge problem. I see it every day. I see people making video calls. The consequences can be deadly, and I have lived through it and continue to live through it."
Calvin revealed a treasured photograph of himself and Frankie at the gender reveal party.
"Two people lost their lives as a result of someone using their phone while driving, and to put it simply my life was destroyed," he said.
"I lost my partner and the chance to become a father, but it has also affected many other people and the effects of this incident will stay with us for the rest of our lives. My life was completely shattered in a moment and now I’m trying to rebuild my life and make something positive out of it."
Adil Iqbal (Image: MEN MEDIA)
Calvin said for some, the use of mobile phones 'is all they've ever known'. "But all it takes is a split second to become distracted, and when you take your eyes off the road anything could happen," he said. "You could hit another car, a pedestrian, or injure yourself.
"Please don't touch your phone while driving. You could get fined, get points on your licence or, more seriously, take somebody’s life. For me, personally, this campaign is very important. It takes a moment to read a message, but a moment to crash as well.
"It has destroyed my life and the plans that we had. It is a mentality that needs to be broken."
'Touch. Screen' is a new campaign being launched by Safer Roads Greater Manchester. Hard-hitting videos featuring Calvin's voice will populate social media, with an ad van travelling around the city region to promote the life-saving message.
Frankie Julia Hough (Image: https://www.lancs.live/news/lancashire-news/partner-pregnant-mum-killed-m66-27916183)
The new campaign is part of the Vision Zero Strategy, which aims to eliminate all deaths and life-changing injuries on Greater Manchester's roads by 2040. In the last ten years nearly 10,000 people who live in, work in or visit the region have been killed or seriously injured on the roads, Transport for Greater Manchester said.
Between 2014 and 2023, 138 people were killed or seriously injured in collisions here where 'driver distraction' was a contributing factor. Of those deaths, 23 lives were lost in a collision where the driver was using a mobile phone, added TfGM.
Superintendent Gareth Parkin, from GMP, said: "The road requires your full attention whatever your mode of transport. Distractions such as mobile phones and other handheld devices can cause you to lose your focus on the road and potentially miss an upcoming hazard.
Calvin Buckley outside the Court of Appeal (Image: PA)
"Using a mobile phone could result in a fine, ban, or worse still, put somebody's life at risk. Even hands-free options can be distracting, so ask yourself whether the call can wait. We have seen some devastating incidents over the years which have had significant impact on families. Please don't be the reason that prevents someone from going home to their loved ones."
A court heard two months before the fatal collision, Iqbal was spotted by police 'racing' with another car in Lancashire while driving a VW Golf. Both cars were stopped and the drivers warned their cars could be seized if they were pulled over again for 'bad driving'.
After the crash, police accessed his mobile phone and discovered Iqbal had taken a video of himself before the crash.
He was using one hand to hold his phone and had the other on the steering wheel, while travelling at up to 123mph. When he hit Frankie’s car, he was driving at 92mph. Iqbal was jailed for 12 years after he pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving[9] and two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
Adil Iqbal (Image: GMP)
Frankie's father claimed at the original sentencing hearing that Iqbal was 'part of a network of young men who get a thrill out of this kind of behaviour'.
Court of Appeal judges, however, went on to increase his sentence to 15 years.[10] One said it 'the worst case of bad driving any of us can recall.'
Calvin, addressing the court at the sentencing hearing in an emotive statement, said: "My past, present and future has been crushed and taken from me. And for what? An adrenaline rush, an ego boost, a false sense of worth, and selfish gratification with no regards for the safety of others. An unnecessarily dangerous risk-taking mentality that needs to change. For what? Was it worth it? The answer is no, it is not."
Stood on the roadside in Swinton, Calvin said Iqbal has shown no remorse, but he's determined to honour the memories of both Frankie and Neeve.
References
- ^ Terrifying Snapchat clip captures moment man blasts gun on Greater Manchester street (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
- ^ was killed in a horror motorway crash that also claimed the life of their unborn daughter (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
- ^ Swinton (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
- ^ Salford (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
- ^ Chadderton (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
- ^ Oldham (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
- ^ Bury (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
- ^ had filmed himself reaching speeds of up to 123mph before the BMW crashed into her Skoda Fabia, (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
- ^ Iqbal was jailed for 12 years after he pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
- ^ went on to increase his sentence to 15 years. (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)