BBC Three launches Unsolved: The Boy Who Disappeared

Unsolved: The Boy Who Disappeared is a real-life investigation into the twenty-year-old case of a British teenager's disappearance.

Published: 18 July 2016

On 2nd November 1996, sixteen-year-old Damien went missing after a night out in the small town of Cowes. Nearly two decades later, his body has never been found and no-one has ever been charged. With so much about his disappearance still unknown, big questions remain…was Damien murdered? And if so, who was behind his death? And what happened to his body?

Journalists Alys Harte and Bronagh Munro venture deeper into the Isle of Wight’s dark underbelly, unearthing evidence and sometimes conflicting accounts, with audiences drawn into the twists and turns of their gripping investigation. Searching for clues and breakthroughs, they work closely with Damien’s family and encounter an extraordinary array of characters, from Damien’s friends to local residents, private investigators, possible witnesses, police informants and convicted criminals who could have vital information.

This innovative online format is built around eight short episodes of around fifteen minutes, combined with maps, key evidential footage and documents and additional interviews published across BBC Three platforms and social media. Unsolved: The Boy Who Disappeared allows audiences to immerse themselves fully in this tragic mystery using #Unsolved.

All Unsolved: The Boy Who Disappeared  content will be published at once allowing audiences to follow the investigation at their own pace and delve as deep as they want. It will be available from bbc.co.uk/bbcthree at 10am from Monday 25th July.

Damian Kavanagh, Controller of BBC Three, says: “We are innovating with new ways to tell stories at BBC Three and Unsolved is the perfect example of how our move online has opened up new possibilities for storytelling. It offers young people new ways to engage with our content and allows them to discover our content at their pace.”

Adam Jessel says: “Unsolved : The Boy Who Disappeared is the result of months of meticulous and dedicated work by the team. Audiences are invited deep into their investigation for a unique, raw and emotionally charged experience”

Bronagh Munro: "After almost twenty years, no one has been able to crack the case of how a teenage boy simply disappeared on a small island. Closed doors, memory loss, half-truths, deceit, denials. None of these would go away. But then again nor would we."

Alys Harte: “We had to wade through almost twenty years of rumour, speculation and lies. Some stories have been retold so many times that they have become part of the mythology of the Isle of Wight. Deciphering fact from fiction was our greatest challenge”

Valerie Nettles: “The last twenty years has been a struggle. We never felt Damien went off on his own for any reason. We have always felt something bad happened. Not knowing for sure has been the worst possible part. I was totally impressed at the level of investigation of the Unsolved team. I threw everything I had and more at them to cipher through. Now I am able to look at my son’s case through new eyes and to see things from a new perspective.” 

Additional content includes:

  • A timeline of events showing key events from 1996 that Damien may have missed
  • Memories of Damien
  • Interview and explainer with an ex –policeman and cadaver dog owner who searches for Damien’s body
  • Interview with the one of the last people to see Damien, the owner of fish and chip shop where Damien was last caught on CCTV tape in 1996.
  • Character profiles of key people
  • Missing People report with statistics and the importance of those first 48 hours.
  • A digitised police report from the original investigation highlighting the most crucial information -
  • An interactive map of the Isle of Wight with video charting where Damien went the night he went missing

EM

Notes to Editors

In February 2016 BBC Three became the first TV channel in the world to switch online. Offering original British comedy, contemporary British drama, innovative entertainment, distinctive British documentaries and provocative current affairs programming all made for a 16-34 target audience, the channel is available from The Best Of Three and BBC Three on iPlayer on over 10,000 devices including Smart TVs, set top boxes, games consoles, native apps, streaming devices and browsers, across social media before being broadcast on BBC One or BBC Two. Also launched in February 2016 BBC Three’s The Daily Drop offers a daily stream of news and sport, original British comedy, drama and documentaries, plus short films, blogs, social media and third party links.

The Best Of Three: bbc.co.uk/bbcthree
The Daily Drop: bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/daily-drop
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