An aristocrat and her partner are facing an Old Bailey trial over the death of their baby daughter early next year.

Constance Marten and Mark Gordon are charged with the manslaughter of baby Victoria, who was found dead in Brighton on March 1 after a two-day search.

The grim discovery came after Marten and Gordon were arrested in Stanmer Villas in Brighton around 9.30pm on February 27, following a tip-off from a member of the public.

They were charged with manslaughter as police continued their search for the missing baby.

A day later, the infant body of baby Victoria was found in a shed wrapped in a plastic bag on an overgrown allotment near where the couple had been arrested.

Covered by nappies, the tiny body was discovered inside a locked shed, magistrates in Crawley heard earlier this month.

Detectives revealed they believe the baby had been dead for several weeks.

Expert examination of the baby is ongoing and a final indictment has not been prepared.

Police had been searching for Marten and Gordon after their burning car was found on the M61 near Bolton on January 5.

Emergency services found signs Marten had given birth inside.

An initial post-mortem examination was unable to establish the cause of the child’s death and it is understood that tests are ongoing.

Police had been attempting to establish the defendants’ whereabouts for several weeks.

The couple were charged on March 2 with the manslaughter of baby Victoria, concealment of the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice.

On Friday, Marten, 35, and Gordon, 48, appeared in the dock of Court One of the Old Bailey before Judge Richard Marks KC.

The couple smiled and chatted as they were reunited for the first time since their earlier court hearing in Crawley.

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Marten wore a smart white and black patterned blouse and Gordon was dressed in a grey sweatshirt.

The pair, who have no fixed address, spoke only to confirm their names and dates of birth.

Both clutched bundles of paperwork during the short hearing.

Judge Marks set a plea and case management hearing for August 18 with the defendants to appear by video link.

A provisional trial at the Old Bailey before the Recorder of London, Judge Mark Lucraft KC, was set for January 2 2024.

The case is expected to last between four and six weeks.

There was no application made for bail and the defendants were remanded into custody.