The young French boy thrown from the Tate Modern viewing balcony by Jonty Bravery in 2019 has left hospital and briefly returned to school, with his family saying he has a ‘smile back on his face’
A lad who was hurled from the viewing balcony at the Tate Modern art gallery now has a “smile back on his face” after being released from hospital, according to his family.
The French youngster was just six when he was severely injured in an assault by then-teenager Jonty Bravery at the London hotspot on August 4, 2019. The child, holidaying with his parents, survived a 100ft (30-metre) plunge but sustained life-altering injuries, including a brain bleed and multiple fractures.
Nearly seven years post the incident, his family, who affectionately refer to him as “notre petit chevalier” – our little knight – announced via an update on a GoFundMe page that he managed to return to school briefly before the summer break.
They said: “We wanted to let you know that our little knight has finally left the hospital! His hospital stay was kept as short as possible because, despite our daily presence and encouragement, our son was becoming deeply disheartened and kept asking when he could go back to class and see his friends.
“It was a great joy for him to return to school shortly before the summer holidays; since the lessons were well-tailored to his needs and challenges, he was able to start learning again, and reuniting with his teachers and classmates put a smile back on his face.”
In April this year, his family reported that his recovery had taken a “sad step backwards”, but this latest message seemed to be much more upbeat.
The GoFundMe campaign was launched by Surrey-based nurse Vicky Diplacto, whose own brother was left paralysed following an incident abroad.
The crowd-funding effort, designed to help with the medical expenses of the injured French lad’s family, has already amassed over £500,000.
The young boy is currently undergoing rigorous rehabilitation, including physiotherapy, speech therapy and neuropsychology.
To mark the conclusion of his hospital treatment, his family are planning a tandem paragliding experience and a seaside holiday with friends for him.
He also intends to restart his adaptive swimming lessons and maths tutoring to makeup for the school time he has missed.
His family expressed: “It will certainly be a busy summer. We are going to try to fully recharge his batteries (and our own) before the start of the school year, and to get back to a family routine as normal as possible.”
At the time of the attack, Bravery, now 24, was living in supported accommodation but was permitted unsupervised outings. He had planned to choose and murder someone, as later revealed in court.
Bravery, who was 17 at the time, admitted to attempted murder and received a life sentence with a minimum term of 15 years.
Earlier this year, he found himself back in court, receiving a 16-week prison sentence after being convicted of assaulting two nurses at Broadmoor, a high-security psychiatric hospital in Berkshire, in September 2024.
In 2020, he was handed a 14-week prison sentence after confessing to attacking staff at the same hospital.
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