The partner of tragic Hollyoaks star Frankie Jules-Hough has opened up about the devastation that followed the moment he arrived at the scene of the crash that killed her and their unborn daughter.
Frankie, 38, was 17 weeks pregnant with baby Neeve when she was struck on the M66 near Bury, Greater Manchester, by dangerous driver Adil Iqbal, 22. Iqbal, who had been filming himself driving his father’s BMW at 123mph, ploughed into the mum-of-two’s Skoda Fabia on the hard shoulder after she had pulled over due to a puncture.
Her two sons and nephew, who were in the car with her, suffered serious injuries but survived. Frankie died two days later in hospital, while baby Neeve, though initially uninjured, passed away shortly after her mum. The family were returning home on 13 May 2023 when their lives changed forever.
Frankie’s partner, Calvin Buckley, 40, has now shared his heartbreak and called for urgent action on reckless driving culture. “My whole world just imploded,” Calvin recalled. “I didn’t have time to grieve. The boys were in comas, and we didn’t know if they’d survive. It was a nightmare I replay in my mind every day.”
He added: “We were so excited to welcome Neeve. Frankie cried when we found out she was a girl. Six days later, they were both gone.”
Following the tragedy, Iqbal was sentenced to 15 years in prison and handed a 15-year driving ban after appeal judges ruled his original sentence of 12 years was too lenient.
Now, Calvin is leading the Frankie and Neeve Road Safety Academy alongside Frankie’s father, Frank. The charity, founded in their memory, delivers education programmes to schools to challenge the dangerous driving culture that Calvin says is “normalised and celebrated” online.
“We have a culture where it’s cool to drive like an idiot and put lives at risk,” Calvin said. “Education is key. We want children to be able to say to their parents, ‘You’re not keeping us safe’.”
Frankie’s son Tommy, nine, and nephew Tobias, six, have created colourful road safety characters as part of the charity’s campaign: Stop, Think, Clunk, Click, and Roadbot. The initiative is already proving a success in schools, with pupils engaging deeply with messages about seatbelts, car seats, and the dangers of using phones behind the wheel.
Frankie, best known for her role as Jess Holt in Channel 4’s Hollyoaks in the early 2000s, had left acting to pursue her passion for working with children. Calvin said it’s fitting that her legacy lives on through young people learning how to protect themselves and their families on the roads.
“Through this work, I feel like we’re doing something to keep Frankie and Neeve’s memory alive. That gives me strength,” he said.
For more information on the Frankie and Neeve Road Safety Academy, or to support their mission, visit the campaign’s official channels.
