Hundreds of bikers say farewell to Didcot victim Whitby Mick

Hundreds of bikers have joined a Redcar demolition worker who was killed in the Didcot power station collapse on his final journey.
Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.
Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.

Motorcycle clubs from around the country paid tribute to family man Mick Collings, 53, known as Whitby Mick, who died in the tragic accident at the power plant last month.

Members riding thundering Triumphs, Harley-Davidsons and Suzukis brought the roads around Kirkleatham Crematorium near Redcar to a standstill.

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Some had copies of a photo of Mr Collings, smiling in his leathers, fixed to the windshield of their bikes.

Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.
Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.

They had met close to Mr Collings’s family home in nearby Brotton, to follow the funeral cortege. His coffin was carried in a motorcycle sidecar.

The crematorium was full of family and friends who remembered the popular biker, with hundreds more bikers standing outside in the swirling rain.

Mr Collings, who left a widow, Lynn, was a devoted member of the Teesriders Motorcycle Club and helped organise bands for events.

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Before the funeral, club chairman Joe Johnson said: “It’s a very, very sad day. I just wish we were riding out for a different reason rather than seeing Mick off on his last ride.

Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.
Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.

“He was a really good guy, he was one of those blokes that everything he did was 110%.

“Being a motorcyclist is dangerous, it’s always in the back of your mind about having an accident.

“Nobody goes to work thinking they are going to get killed, that’s why this one is so different.

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“Whether he was killed in Didcot or on the road, he would have got the same send-off, because that’s what sort of bloke he was.”

Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.
Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.

Club committee member Craig Ransom, also known as Chop, said: “We are all devastated, he was a good friend, someone you would be proud to call a friend.

“He is going to leave a massive hole in the club, but most of all he will leave a hole in Lynn’s life.

“This is something we always do for a biker funeral, to giver respect to that person.

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“It’s an escort, a procession, it’s their final ride so we all ride together.”

Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.
Bikers at Kirkleatham Memorial Park for the funeral of Mick Collings, who died in the Didcot Power Station accident.

A family obituary in the Middlesbrough-based Gazette newspaper said: “Always happy and smiling, Michael loved everyone.

“He always lived life to the full - working to provide for his family, making improvements to his home, keeping in close contact with his family and friends, organising rock music events and attending motorbike rallies throughout the UK and Europe with his wife Lynn, his ‘best lass’.

“This wonderful man is no longer with us and has left a huge void in all our lives.”

Demolition workers Ken Cresswell, 57, and, John Shaw, 61, both from Rotherham, South Yorkshire, and Chris Huxtable, from Swansea, remain missing following the power station collapse on February 23.

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