Picnic at Hanging Rock

On Valentine's Day 1900, students from Appleyard College embark on a picnic to Hanging Rock led by teachers Miss McCraw and Mlle de Poitiers. Sara remains at the school due to family issues, and the teachers are concerned about the time as their watches have stopped at noon. The girls settle into their picnic, setting the stage for the mysterious events to follow.

Miranda, Marion, Irma, and Edith ask permission to explore the area around Hanging Rock. They begin climbing, and under a strange influence, they fall asleep. Their exploration marks the beginning of the strange phenomenon occurring on that day.

After climbing, Miranda, Marion, and Irma wake up in a trance and proceed into a crevice of the Rock. Edith watches them with distress and then screams and flees. The missing girls become the focus of an intense search and investigation.

The remaining students and teachers return hours later, missing Miranda, Marion, Irma, and Miss McCraw. The police are called and conduct their own search without success, while Edith reports seeing a strange red cloud before fleeing.

Michael Fitzhubert and his friend Albert return to search for the missing girls and Miss McCraw. Michael stays overnight at the Rock, where he eventually finds Irma unconscious and badly shaken. They later recover, but the fate of the others remains unknown.

Irma, now physically recovered, cannot remember what happened during the disappearance. She prepares to leave for Europe to reunite with her parents, and classmates react with suspicion and hostility as she says farewell.

Sara, devastated by the events and her feelings of loss for her friends, is found dead after falling from a height, crashing into a greenhouse. Her death signifies the tragic culmination of the mysterious events surrounding Hanging Rock.

Mrs. Appleyard, haunted by the school’s collapse and the unsolved mystery, is found dead at the base of Hanging Rock, having apparently fallen while climbing. Her death symbolizes the ultimate toll of the day's tragic events.

The disappearance of Miranda, Marion, and Miss McCraw remains an unsolved mystery that continues to haunt the local community. The events cast a long shadow over the school, its students, and the town.

Irma departs from the school, emotionally affected and guilt-ridden, as the community grapples with the unresolved mystery. The story leaves lingering questions about the true nature of the disappearances and the influence of Hanging Rock.