Madeleine McCann’s parents released a video message addressed to their daughter on Friday as they faced Christmas without their four-year-old.

In an appeal recorded at their home in the village of Rothley in Leicestershire, Kate and Gerry McCann spoke through the camera directly to their daughter, and also appealed to anyone who might know of her whereabouts to end their “despair and anguish”.

The couple have not seen her since they reported her missing from their holiday apartment at the holiday resort of Praia de Luz in Portugal on May 3. During the three-minute message filmed in front of a Christmas tree, Mrs McCann refers to her two-year-old twins and says, “Madeleine, it’s mummy and daddy here. Just know how much we love you, Madeleine. We all miss you so much.

“Sean and Amelie talk about you all the time every day. Be brave sweetheart.”
Mr McCann says, “This special time of year is all about families coming together with love and peace. Clearly for us and the rest of our family, it’s going to be the hardest Christmas imaginable without Madeleine here.”
The couple each discuss the possibility that someone knows what happened to their daughter, and appeal for anyone with information to call a confidential hotline: 0034 902 300 213.

In a direct appeal to a supposed abductor, Mrs McCann urges them to also come forward and call the number.