Had Similar hassles with bridgestone a few years back, denies there was anything wrong with their tyre that had clearly overheated and shredded in 400 miles... wouldnt have minded cept it werent a super sticky, jus common road tyre.....
Anyway, point is... There is no reason for you to deal with metz/pirelli yourself. Under UK law the shop that sold you the tyre should be sorting it and if they cant prove theres nothing wrong with it then they should be replacing it or refunding you the money.
On a different note.... Look up Fred Furlong on facebook (Furlong Tyres), he only does bike tyres and been doin it for years, show him the pics etc and he may shed some light on the matter or at least be able to help you out.
Fred caters for drag/sprint/circuit racers the lot..... So he's def seen a stressed tyre or two in his life