Footie ace Wes Brown's daughter Halle, 14, phoned her mum from Ariana Grande concert moments after '

THE wife of ex-England footballer Wes Brown has revealed their daughter ran for her life after she was caught up in the Manchester terror attack.

Halle Brown, 14, was just 150 metres from Salman Abedi when he detonated the device on Monday night, killing 22.

Her mum Leanne, 40, told of her horror when the hysterical schoolgirl phoned her minutes after the blast, sobbing: “There’s a bomb, there’s a bomb.”

Leanne told The Sun on Sunday: “At first I thought she might be overreacting, that there might have just been a bang. But then she said, ‘People are bleeding’.

“That’s when I knew something awful had happened.”

Leanne and former Manchester United defender Wes, who were at home in Cheshire, ran to their car and headed for the arena.

Meanwhile Halle, who had watched Ariana Grande with a pal, grabbed her and ran through the arena hunting for a way out.

Halle said: “I knew it was a bomb. I had watched terror attacks on the news and I thought someone was going to come into the arena and start shooting.

“Then I was thinking, ‘What if there’s another bomb?’ I was scared, but I knew I couldn’t freeze.

“So I grabbed my friend and ran. But we couldn’t get out of the nearest exit because it was at the top of steep stairs, and the aisle was full of people."

“Everyone was panicking and all the people at the bottom were pushing the people at the top.

“Suddenly I saw a gap in another queue so I pulled us free, ran through the rows of chairs and we managed to get into the lobby.

“That’s when I saw that some people were bleeding.

“One girl was sat on the floor and it looked like her leg had been wounded by bomb shrapnel.

“It was really terrifying, but all I could think of was getting out.”

As Halle and her friend fought their way to safety, Leanne and Wes could hear the two girls’ every move, as she had not hung up.

Leanne said: “It was the worst half an hour of my life.

“I can’t even tell you what was going through my head other than I wanted Halle. I was in a state of panic and shock, and she was so far away from me.

“I just wanted to get her in the car and hold her. Wes was panicking too.

"As we came into the centre of Manchester there were police cars and fire engines everywhere, and we couldn’t go further.

“Thankfully our friend had gone on foot and been able to find them. When we saw her with Halle, it was just the most overwhelming relief.”

After being reunited with their eldest daughter, Leanne and Wes returned home.

But Real Housewives of Cheshire star Leanne had no idea of the extent of the atrocity Halle had escaped until the next morning.

She went on: “That night there were still a lot of mixed messages on social media.

“I saw reports that people had died, but I wasn’t sure if they were true. A lot of people were saying victims were crushed in the panic."

“So when Wes woke me up and said, ‘It was a suicide bomb, 22 people are dead’, my stomach churned and my heart was in my mouth.

"Ever since I’ve been going over what could have happened, what if the girls had gone to get a drink or left a few minutes early?

“I can’t understand how someone could go into a crowded place, let alone a children’s concert, and do something so unspeakably evil.

“It’s heart-wrenching to think of the pain the victims’ families must be going through, and my heart goes out to all of them.”

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Tributes have flooded into Manchester as the 22 victims were named.

And Halle told how the news Martyn Hett, 29, had died left her reeling, as she had danced with him minutes before the explosion.

She said: “I didn’t know Martyn, but I’d seen him around, and I met him that night. I was dancing with him. He was having the time of his life.

“I remember I said to him as we were dancing, ‘Oh my God, I love you.’ You could just tell he was so happy.

“So when I found out he had passed away, it really upset me.”

Leanne went on: “For the past few days Wes and I have just been concentrating on Halle, making sure that we are there for her.

“Because she has a few friends who were at the concert too, it is comforting to know she can talk to them about what she experienced.

“I support an amazing charity called Once Upon A Smile, and they told me about how I can help her cope with her feelings.”

Once Upon A Smile is a Manchester-based bereavement charity working with police to help victims’ families.

They are also supporting survivors, friends, emergency services, healthcare workers and the public.

And Leanne, who also has daughters Lilia, ten, and six-year-old Lola with Wes, 37, urged anyone traumatised to seek their help.

She said: “I want people to know that if they, or their children, are struggling to cope there is support there for them.”

Halle added: “My message to other people who have been through the same thing is that they should not be afraid to talk about it."

“What happened on Monday will stay with me forever but you can’t let it scare you, because that’s when the terrorists win.

“And we just can’t let them win.”

Leanne and Halle have not been paid for this interview.

Instead, at their request, The Sun on Sunday is making a donation to the Once Upon A Smile charity.

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