Madeleine McCann inquiry timeline

British girl Madeleine McCann vanished aged three from a Portuguese holiday apartment in May 2007.

A Portuguese police investigation which ran until July 2008, and a continuing high-profile international campaign run by her parents Kate and Gerry, have failed to locate her.

At one stage, Mr and Mrs McCann, of Rothley, Leicestershire, and another British man - Robert Murat - were considered formal suspects in the case, but all three were later cleared.

Madeleine McCann went missing from her family's holiday apartment at the Ocean Club, in Praia da Luz, on 3 May, 2007.

She was holidaying with her parents and her younger twin siblings.

Mrs McCann is understood to have told police that after tucking the children up in bed Madeleine - who was wearing pink pyjamas with the words "Sleepy Eeyore" on them - said: "Mummy, I've had the best day ever. I'm having lots and lots of fun."

It is known Mr and Mrs McCann then went for dinner with a group of friends, at a tapas restaurant 100 yards from the apartment.

Their party - since dubbed the "tapas seven" - included fellow medics Matthew Oldfield, Russell O'Brien, David Payne and Fiona Payne.

Also present were Rachael Oldfield (married to Matthew), Jane Tanner (partner of Russell O'Brien) and Diane Webster (Fiona Payne's mother).

Leaks from the investigation suggest the McCanns arrived for dinner at 2035 local time that evening, according to their friends.

At 2105 Mr McCann went to check on the children, followed by Dr Oldfield, they said.

Ten minutes later, having left the table to check on her own children, Jane Tanner says she saw a man carrying a child, close to the McCanns' apartment

At 2200 Kate McCann checked on her children. Madeleine was gone.

Mrs McCann told police that when she went to the apartment she found the outside shutter and window to Madeleine's room had been opened and her daughter was missing.

Mrs McCann said police were called within 10 minutes of finding her daughter gone. Guilhermino Encarnacao, director of the judicial police in the Faro region, said officers arrived within 10 minutes of being alerted, and an investigation unit began work within 30 minutes

The manager of the Mark Warner resort in Portugal, John Hill, said about 60 staff and guests at the complex searched until daybreak for the little girl, while police notified border police, Spanish police and airports.

We serialise Kate and Gerry McCann's book Madeleine in The Sun ...

What Kate and husband Gerry fear happened to their precious daughter. How they were made official suspects in their daughter's abduction and how they have devoted their lives to searching for their daughter for the past four years.

The book, simply called 'Madeleine', containing never before seen photos of the little girl, is being serialised in The Sun from this Saturday and all next week.

The McCanns also hope the book may help provide the key piece of information that could lead to Madeleine being found.

Gerry said: "We are hopeful that this book may help the investigation to find Madeleine in other ways too.

"Our hope is that it may prompt those who have relevant information (knowingly or not) to come forward and share it with our team. Somebody holds that key piece of the jigsaw."

'Madeleine' is being published on May 12th by Transworld at a price of £20.

Readers can buy Madeleine (RRP £20) for the special price of £18.00 including free UK and Ireland p&p. To order please call 01206 255 800 and quote the reference 'MMC'.

© Kate McCann 2011. Extracted from MADELEINE by Kate McCann, to be published by Bantam Press on 12 May priced at £20.

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