DISTRAUGHT mother Dorothy Flanagan has told of how the daughter with a heart of gold moved to London to "spread her wings".

And she revealed in court how loner Gareth Horton had tried to become close to her family -- taking over walking her dog when Charlotte moved to London.

Mrs Flanagan first met Horton through her job at Darwen Medical Centre and knew his parents, who also live in Darwen, she told a jury at the Old Bailey.

In court, she told how she had little to do with Horton until he moved in with Charlotte last summer.

"I only saw him if he was starting work at Blackburn with Darwen Council when Charlotte finished and I had gone to pick her up," Mrs Flanagan said.

"He was shy and awkward and would never start a conversation."

Mrs Flanagan, of Melville Gardens, Darwen, relived her final phone call with Charlotte, who she said had gone to London to 'spread her wings for a year'.

One of the things that came up in the conversation, she said, was the fact that Charlotte said Horton was 'doing my head in.' He had been at her pub since Boxing Day.

In that conversation, Charlotte had spoken about visiting her new boyfriend David, in Nottingham on New Year's Day and made plans to come back to Darwen for a family party.

Hours later she was dead.

Mrs Flanagan described Charlotte in court as a girl with a heart of gold who had lots of friends and active social life and full of life.

She had planned to come back to the North West after a year to study nursing, her mother said.

She also revealed how Charlotte spent three years fighting anorexia.

She said: "She never let it stop her getting on with things, she fought it and overcame it."

After Charlotte moved to London, Horton took over the job of walking her mother's dog.

"He would mention he was going to London, but only that he might see Charlotte," Mrs Flanagan said.

"When I spoke to Charlotte on New Year's Eve I asked if she had seen him and she said 'He is still here'."