Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

4,000-mile journey to see Ed Sheeran saved by kind-hearted police constable

Denise Buie and her daughter Alyssa Midence, from Florida, nearly missed the Sunderland show when their car broke down.

Katie Dickinson
Friday 10 June 2022 11:58 BST
Denise Buie with PC Andy Jackson (Northumbria Police/PA)
Denise Buie with PC Andy Jackson (Northumbria Police/PA) (PA Media)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A mother and daughter who travelled 4,000 miles from the US to see Ed Sheeran in Sunderland have praised a kind-hearted police constable who helped save their trip.

Denise Buie and her daughter Alyssa Midence flew from their Florida home last week as part of a 10-day trip to celebrate the 22-year-old’s graduation.

They had tickets to see the global superstar’s show at the Stadium of Light in Tyne and Wear on Friday – but excitement turned to despair when their hire car broke down near the city’s Northern Spire Bridge.

With traffic queuing behind them, Northumbria Police motor patrols officer Police Constable Andy Jackson helped move the vehicle off the road while they waited for a recovery vehicle.

Two hours later, PC Jackson was driving back and saw Ms Buie and Ms Midence still waiting in their car at the side of the road – with no sign of a recovery vehicle.

He pulled over and spoke to the distraught women, who were already resigned to missing the concert, with Ed Sheeran due on stage any moment.

PC Jackson contacted the recovery firm and told them the key for the car would be in the front office of Southwick police station to collect – before escorting the tearful women to the stadium himself.

“I just couldn’t believe the kindness shown to us,” Ms Buie, 52, said.

“I kept calling PC Jackson our ‘superman’. He didn’t have to stop and understandably would have had other things to do, so we were just blown away by his willingness to go above and beyond.

“We are truly grateful that he went the extra mile – and that he helped save Alyssa’s graduation celebration.

“It was a really distressing time, having travelled all that way on our first visit to England. So to be met with such generosity and compassion is something that we’ll never forget.”

PC Jackson said: “I was just pleased to help. When I was driving back past them a couple of hours later I realised it was going to be tight in terms of them being able to get to the concert full stop.

“After seeing how upset they both were, and given they travelled halfway across the world for it, I was more than happy to quickly hatch a plan and make sure they got to see Ed, before continuing with my shift.

“I’m pleased that they had a good time and hope they got home safe.”

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in