Family pays tribute to Southampton man who died in M3 collision

The family of a Southampton man who sadly died following a collision on the M3 have paid tribute to him.

Police were called at around 2pm on Friday, 21 May to the collision, which involved a black Harley Davidson motorcycle and a white Volvo HGV lorry between junctions 8 and 9 of the southbound carriageway.

Sadly the motorcyclist, Michael James, aged 40, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Paying tribute to him, his family said: “Mike was a great young man with a big heart who will be deeply missed by all his family and friends.

“He was fondly known as “Tuns” to his many friends and family due to his fun personality, and things were certainly never dull when Tuns was around.

“Our lives will never be the same again without him and a huge hole has been left in our hearts.

“We would like to thank all the emergency services involved and members of the public who helped Mike on this tragic day, we will be forever thankful.”

His daughters Jessica, aged 21 and Megan, aged 16, added: “We are heartbroken at losing our Dad. He was an amazing Dad and we loved him dearly. He will always be in our hearts.”

Officers are continuing to investigate the exact circumstances of the collision.

Anyone with information or dash cam footage should call 101, quoting reference number 44210196667.