The parents of Madeleine McCann attend a special mass in the Leicestershire
village of Rothley to commemorate the disappearance of their daughter
Madeleine a year ago from the Portuguese holiday resort of Praia da Luz.
Madeleine's close relatives arrive in the Portuguese town to take part in an
anniversary church service.

 ROTHLEY, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (MAY 3, 2008) ITN -

The parents of Madeleine McCann attended a church service on
Saturday (May 3) to commemorate the one year anniversary of their daughter
Madeleine's disappearance from a sleepy Portuguese holiday resort.
   Carrying flowers and walking hand in hand, Gerry and Kate McCann left
the Anglican parish church of St Mary and St John in the Leicestershire town
of Rothley after a special church service was held for Madeleine.
    In an interview with the Portuguese daily Publico on Saturday, Gerry
McCann said he and his wife were convinced their daughter was still alive.
    Madeleine disappeared from her holiday apartment during a family
vacation to this quiet corner of Portugal's Algarve on May 3 last year. Her
parents, who were dining with friends at a nearby restaurant when Madeleine
disappeared, were named by Portuguese police as suspects in the crime.  
   In Praia da Luz, television networks set up equipment for special
transmissions in front of the resort complex where Madeleine went missing and
morning newspapers showed  photos of the little girl on their front pages on
Saturday.
   Madeleine's uncle and aunt, John and Trish, arrived on Saturday to take
part in a special service in the town's church to commemorate the
anniversary.
   Speaking to reporters ahead of the mass, John McCann, said the decision
for Madeleine's parents to not come to Portugal was not an easy one.   
     "Put yourselves in their shoes, you know, they had a lovely
holiday until Madeleine was taken. They had fantastic support from the people
of Luz and from many different parts of Portugal and yet, associated with
Praia da Luz is a lot of pain, a lot of emotional turmoil and it's a hard time
for them. On the balance of things, the best thing to do was to stay at home
and look after the two children that remain with them so it wasn't an easy
decision for them to come but we as a broad, close family felt we had to be
here," McCann told reporters.
    Madeleine disappeared a few days before her fourth birthday. 
     Portuguese police have given few clues about their investigation due
to strict secrecy laws but appear to have made no major breakthroughs. 
    The case has attracted huge global media interest since then, with
reporters staying on in Praia da Luz for many months after the girl
disappeared, reporting on every element of the McCanns lives as they waited
for news. 
    The McCanns returned to Britain in early September after they were
named as suspects, in a move the head of Portuguese police has said was a
"hasty" decision. 
    The McCanns are convinced the best chance to find their daughter is to
appeal to the public for help, to keep the case alive in the media.