IT is now seven years since Rory Johnson-Hatfield went for a night out in York and was never seen again.

Despite untiring searching by Rory's parents, Doug and Liz, and extensive police inquiries, Rory, who was 29 at the time, has not been seen since.

The information given to North Yorkshire Police was that Rory from Skipton, had left the town by train on November 19, 2015.

CCTV footage shows him at 12.32am on November 20 where he is seen heading into York with a friend, walking along Tower Street, past Clifford’s Tower.

Six minutes later at 12.38am, the same CCTV camera picks him up on his own, leaving the city centre on the other side of Tower Street and crossing Skeldergate Bridge towards the Skeldergate/Terry Avenue area of York.

Another CCTV camera picks Rory up a few minutes later at City Mills flats, on the other side of the river.

That is the last known sighting.

Doug, who lives in France with Rory's step-mum, Charlotte, while Rory's mum, Liz, lives in Lytham St Annes, said the pain never goes.

"We are always in limbo. We think of Rory each day wondering where he is. Police believe he went into the river but we just don't know," he said.

Doug and Liz persuaded the police to use cadaver dogs and kayaks to search the river, though there was a delay because it was in flood, but no evidence was ever found.

Doug, who used to run Brody's Restaurant, in Skipton, added that York is full of tourists and that a lot of people out and about that night will not have been local and Rory will just have been another face in the crowd. He says someone may have a picture of him without realising which may help in building a picture of where he went after being at City Mills flats.

"Someone must have seen him so we are hoping someone's memory will be jogged. Seven years is a long time not knowing what happened. His family is devastated as are all his friends," Doug added, saying nothing about what happened added up.

He said Rory had left belongings behind in his flat which he always carried with him such as his passport and a watch Doug had bought him for his 21st birthday which he had taken to a jewellers and had not collected.

"One day we hope to have answers but until then we carry on in hope he will be found," said Doug.