Constance Marten, 37, took the stand at the Old Bailey this week during her retrial, asserting her deep love for her baby daughter, Victoria. Marten, along with her partner Mark Gordon, 50, is facing serious charges of gross negligence manslaughter and causing or allowing the death of a child. The pairs trial has gripped public attention, especially following the tragic discovery of their daughters remains in March 2023.

On the day she was meant to start her testimony, Marten complained of a toothache and a headache, delaying her appearance before the jury. However, when she finally began to speak, she expressed her unwavering affection for Victoria, who, according to authorities, was found deceased in a Brighton allotment in a shopping bag, her body so severely decomposed that pathologists could not determine the cause of death.

In their first trial, Marten and Gordon were found guilty of concealing the birth of their child and perverting the course of justice by failing to report the babys death. As they face retrial, Martens emotional testimony is a crucial aspect of their defense. When questioned by her barrister, Mr. FitzGibbon KC, about her feelings towards Victoria, she replied, "Absolutely," in response to whether she loved her daughter. Marten also emphatically denied any wrongdoing, stating, "Absolutely not. We did everything we could to protect her."

Reflecting on the circumstances surrounding her daughters death, Marten expressed her struggles with the grieving process, stating, "I don't think this process has really allowed me to grieve properly. I still feel angry, upset. Still an element of shock." She went on to discuss the loss of her four other children, who had been taken into state care prior to the tragic events. "Not being with them is very, very hard," she lamented, expressing her emotional turmoil over the separation.

When asked about the decisions made regarding her children being taken away, Marten was candid in her criticism, declaring, "Absolutely not it's an absolute outrage," describing her childrens removal as them being "stolen by the state." She revealed her longing for a large family, stating, "At least seven children would be my dream," and shared a vision of an idyllic life on a farm.

Marten recounted her relationship with Mark Gordon, whom she met approximately a decade ago in a shop in East London, describing the encounter as "fate." She expressed her deep affection for Gordon, saying, "I love him very much," and emphasized that he is "very dear" to her.

When discussing her background, Marten noted that while she came from a financially privileged family, her emotional upbringing was lacking, stating, "Financially yes, emotionally not all." She shared insights into her strained relationship with her family, whom she described as "very cold" towards Gordon, and characterized them as "bigoted." Martens upbringing included time spent in boarding school from the age of eight, leading to a disconnect with her family.

After learning of her pregnancy with Victoria, Marten and Gordon initially planned to relocate abroad, but family intervention changed their course. Instead, they moved from their home in London to a series of transient accommodations, including hotels and bed and breakfasts, which Marten described as an unstable existence. In a poignant recollection, she detailed how they rented a cottage in Northumberland just before Christmas 2022. On Christmas Eve, while shopping for baby supplies at Primark in Carlisle, Marten began to feel labor pains. She recounted the experience of giving birth in the cottage, stating, "It was very quick, actually. Very easy," before the family moved again just two days later. "Obviously, it would have been nicer to have been somewhere stable and to have been able to properly relax but we weren't in that position," she admitted to the jury.