For 35 days no one heard from Jane Longhurst despite searches and numerous media appeals from police and her distraught relatives.

March 14: Jane said goodbye to her partner Malcolm Sentance as he left for work at 7am. She was spotted by two former pupils in Beaconsfield Road, Brighton, carrying shopping at about 2pm. She was last seen at 2.40pm outside her home. At 4pm, Malcolm arrived home. Jane's purse, mobile phone and keys were also missing. He called police at midnight.

March 17: Police appealed for information. Malcolm was questioned by detectives. His alibis were all checked out and his computer seized.

March 18: Malcolm told a Press conference: "She is somewhere where she is unable to call - maybe lying in a field or someone's house."

March 19: Jane's sister Sue Barnett broke down in tears at a Press conference as she begged for her to get in touch.

March 20: Operation Keen was launched with 45 officers under Detective Chief Inspector Steve Dennis.

March 21: Cynthia Eraut, the last woman to speak to Jane, said her friend sounded "absolutely normal and cheerful" on the morning of her disappearance.

March 22: Jane's mother Liz said she was "starting to fear the worst". Fellow members of the Musicians of All Saints prayed for her safe return at a concert for which she had been rehearsing. Her seat on stage was empty.

March 26: Police searched the railway embankment near London Road station. Malcolm said he would ask Jane to marry him. He said: "Let her go so we can get on with our lives."

March 27: Detectives admitted: "We're scratching our heads."

March 30: Jane failed to contact her mother on Mothering Sunday.

April 1: Uplands School decided to press ahead with a fund-raising auction to help take pupils on a trip to Belgium.

April 3: Dog walkers and farmers joined the hunt. Police said they were treating the investigation as murder.

April 5: The school auction went ahead, hosted by actor Brian Capron, Coronation Street serial killer Richard Hillman.

April 7 and 8: Police searched beauty spots across Sussex.

April 10: Police offered a £5,000 reward for information leading to Jane's discovery. The Argus printed hundreds of posters. Liz told another Press conference: "We want the nightmare to come to an end."

April 17: Sue told of her frustration. She said: "Brighton is supposed to be a happening place. Well, make it happen."

April 19: A passer-by saw a small fire in woodland at Wiggonholt Common, near Pulborough at about 8pm. Firefighters discovered the burning body of a woman and police were called.