1. Missing
Eight-year-old Sarah Payne vanishes in West Sussex. As the police hunt grows and the world's media descend, her mother Sara refuses to give up hope that she will be found alive.
On 1 July 2000, eight-year-old Sarah Payne is playing in a field near her grandparents' home in West Sussex when she sets off back to the house alone. Her brother goes after her, but by the time he reaches the end of the field, she is gone. That evening, her mother, Sara, has to dial 999 and tell the operator: I've lost my daughter.
Almost immediately the story of the missing child dominates the headlines, and Sussex Police make the unusual decision to work arm in arm with the media in searching for her. Making almost daily public appeals, Sara does everything she can to keep the story in the headlines. As the days go on with no sign of Sarah, she refuses to give up hope that her daughter will be found alive.
Shadow World: Gripping stories from the shadows — BBC investigations from across the UK.
Presenter and Series Producer: Edmund Coulthard
Producer: Joanna Humphreys
Sound Design: Iain Chambers
Head of Production: Stephanie Edwards
Production Coordinator: Neena Abdullah
Executive Producer: Innes Bowen
A Forest production for BBC Radio 4
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- Wed 11 Nov 202609:30BBC Radio 4
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