Gaia Pope: BBC series with Zara McDermott on teen's death

The series, which will be broadcast on BBC Three and iPlayer, sees Zara McDermott attempt to understand and shed light on case of the Dorset teenager who died in 2017.

The 19-year-old went missing in Swanage on November 7, 2017. She was found 11 days later, less than a mile away, in undergrowth on a clifftop between Dancing Ledge and Anvil Point.

BBC series 'Gaia: A Death on Dancing Ledge' will highlight her family’s search for truth and justice.

The documentary makers said the show will explore “failing and oversights by officials, including the police and health care professionals, involved in her care”.

Gaia Pope

Friends and family of Gaia talk about her life and the circumstances that led to her death, while former Police and Crime Commissioner for Dorset at the time of her death, Martyn Underhill, also gives his thoughts.

Gaia's older sister Clara, twin sister Maya, mum Kim and dad Richard said: “Gaia would have been 25 earlier this month, our hearts ache thinking about everything she was and all the possibilities of what she could have become. With the release of this series, we’re clinging on to the hope that we can be part of the change Gaia so desperately needed.

“We want young people and survivors watching to know that they are not alone; there are people and organisations that will listen to and support you.

"In speaking up, united we can eliminate the perpetuation of rape culture in society and hold the authorities that are meant to protect us to account.”

The series, which airs on Tuesday, July 25, will explore whether enough was done in advance of Gaia’s death to protect and support her – and other young women and girls in the area - and examines what needs to change in the future.

• Dorset Police not creating specialist rape unit despite calls from Gaia Pope's family
• 'She deserved better': Emotional family tribute to 'fiercely loyal' Gaia Pope
• Dorset Police asked to make host of changes to prevent future deaths after Gaia Pope inquest
• 'We are truly sorry': Dorset Police admit failings and apologises to Gaia Pope's family
• Mental health, mental state and non-referral contributed to death Gaia Pope, jury finds

Zara McDermott (Image: BBC/Summer Films/Ellis O'Brien)

TV presenter and documentary maker Zara said: "When I first heard about the disappearance of 19-year-old Gaia on the news in 2017, I was immediately struck by her story. She and I were the same age.

“I saw Gaia’s face on the news for days and days after this, and it really struck a chord with me. A young woman with the world at her feet, yet her life was over before it had even begun.

“I began diving deeper into Gaia’s story, alongside her brave family, and I uncovered a huge amount in the year and a half I spent down in Dorset. This young woman needed a voice, and I wanted to tell her story.”