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A person is reported missing in the UK every 90 seconds. It’s a terrifying statistic and, while many of the cases find a resolution, 1% become what is known as long-term missing, where the investigation remains open indefinitely.

That 1% currently accounts for 4,500 cases in the UK alone.

Naturally, outwith the missing person’s loved ones, public interest in the cases diminishes through time. But this new podcast hopes to re-engage public interest by working with the families of missing people to bring new information to light and make fresh breakthroughs in investigations that have long remained dormant.

Hosted by journalist and broadcaster Pandora Sykes (above),the Missing has been created in collaboration with UK charity Missing People and Locate International, which is an organisation made up of ex-detectives who are dedicated to helping the families of missing people find loved ones. Featuring interviews with family and friends, the episodes are available in not only English but in German, Spanish and Danish in order to reach as many people as possible. The series will study 20 cases, including Andrew Gosden who was 14 when he skipped school in Doncaster and bought a one-way train ticket to London, never to be heard of again, and Suzy Lamplugh, who disappeared in broad daylight in 1986, following an appointment with an unidentified man known only as Mr Kipper. Pandora said:“i am thrilled to be the host on the first season of The Missing. It’s true mystery, with an ethical purpose – to try to find, or at least find out what happened to, the longterm missing, of which there are 4,500 cases in the UK alone. I am so grateful to Missing People and Locate International for their support and tireless hard work.”