Madeleine McCann: Gerry On The Telly And It Could Be U
“MADELEINE: It’s not too late says mum.”
The front page of the Express contains a “Dramatic Plea”.
But it’s not dramatic so much as it is desperate. “It’s not too late, please give her back,” says Kate McCann.
As ever the Express tells readers that Mrs McCann is a GP. Gerry McCann, we learn is a “consultant cardiologist”.
Says she: “Every day is hard. Every day is very difficult… The important thing is getting Madeleine back and we hope that what we are doing increases the chance of that.”
What’s The Story?
Indeed, that is the important thing. It is the only thing. But the press want more.
Says Gerry McCann: “We have a mix of very positive days, when we have done big things and achieved things or big events with the campaign, but we are aware these things are secondary.”
He’s right. Of course he is. But the press have been pointing fingers at the police, gawping at “creepy” men, listening to anyone with a paedophile story, looking for bodies and signs. They have not been on the trail of Madeleine. They follow the McCanns around, first Spain, then Germany, then the UK, the Vatican and Morocco. They are watching the parents. The parents are the story. And we are invited to look on like voyeurs.
We can wear braclets. Find Madeleine is this year’s Make Poverty History campaign.
Infotainment
The Sun says Gerry McCann is to appear at the Edinburgh TV Festival. No, not because he’s given us hours of great telly. Although he is taking the slot once occupied by Simon Cowell and Michael Barrymore. Gerry will be “quizzed” by Newsnight presenter Kirsty Walk on the media campaign to find Madeleine McCann.
Peter Barron, organiser of the event, rated the Find Madeleine campaign a “new and moving phenomenon”. What was that about good telly?
But it’s scaring the children. The Star says an appeal to find Madeleine is being screened before cinema showings of U-rated Shrek The Third.
Children with faces full of popcorn and crisps hear that Madeleine was “snatched” from her bed. “Madeleine’s parents are devastated, but they haven’t given up hope.”
A mum says it’s “unfair” to show this to children. “It makes them fear that they too could be abducted.”
It spreads the fear. It creates anxiety. And it shows no sign whatsoever of finding Madeleine nor the person or persons who might have taken her…
Posted: 4th, July 2007 | In: Madeleine McCann Comments (669) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
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August 7th, 2007 at 12:23 pm
Yesterday, monday, I spoke through the phone to a person in Portugal who told me: -The Portuguese police spoke to the media (yesterday), on TV, on which they told that the blood trace found in the apartment comes from somebody who was already dead.The police said also that the whole party group, including the Mccanns, are now suspects. The police did not say if the blood is Madeleine’s.
How come that the Britsh media let themselves be manipulated by the Mccanns, no questions, no criticism, even the BBC World yesterday late in the evening was not telling about the PJ intervieuw?
What about stopping criticising the PJ and starting criticising themselves?They all should be ashamed of themselves.What kind of media are that?
Madeleine, rest in peace.
August 7th, 2007 at 8:03 am
You do not risk pariah status. Many of us have said this from the start, at the risk of stoning and abuse from the keyboards for hire brigade.
You can fool some of the people some of the time but not all of the people all of the time.
I hope Murat gets his apologies from the McScams and their attempts to scapegoat him for this horrible crime against an innocent child who has paid in spades for her parents neglect.
August 7th, 2007 at 1:52 am
I’m getting increasingly suspicious about the media management of the Madeleine McGann story. Something tells me that there is something quite significant that we aren’t being told and that the family has had professional help in ensuring that only a carefully crafted and sympathetic narrative is recounted by the mass media.
Firstly, there is the fact that on the morning after the abduction, the suggestion that the family were in any way neglectful (remember: the abduction happened at a time when the child was in a hotel room and the parents were eating at a restaurant) had already been carefully pre-butted. That in itself is fair enough: I doubt any parents haven’t, from time to time, taken a calculated risk like that.
Recently though, we’ve had an increasing number of articles that reinforce the Daily Mail-esque prejudice that the police force of any country other than our own are clunking incompetents and living proof of the superiority of the British species. These are the Portuguese for Pete’s sake - they used to own the bits of the world we didn’t. This isn’t exactly a backward nation, yet it has been presented as such. The worst incident I can recall was John Humphries lambasting the Portuguese Ambassador on the Today programme when he was patiently attempting to explain that in a country that is part of the Schengen Agreement can’t exactly set up strict border controls within minutes every time a child is reported as going missing.
Now we’re being told that a businessman, Stephen Winyard, is putting up a £1m reward. Why? Does he do this every time a child gets abducted? Is it just because she is blonde, white and pretty with ‘decent’ middle class parents, or is there some other reason?
Finally, there are those photos. Loads of them. A new one in a different newspaper every day. Usually in cases such as these, you get a single photo which quickly becomes iconic as the media reproduces it ad infinitum. This time, the family have generously given up all their photo albums. For a couple that are said to be distraught, they are being remarkably co-operative with the media.
I’m not saying they’ve done anything wrong, or that this isn’t a tragedy. But these things happen. Stories like this usually go off on all sorts of tangents until the media settle on a narrative; not this time. I know I risk pariah status for pointing this out, but we are being spun, and I would like to know why.
August 6th, 2007 at 8:34 am
August 06, 2007 12:00am
MISSING four-year-old British girl Madeleine McCann may have been murdered in her bedroom in a holiday resort in southern Portugal.
Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manha reported the theory last night as 10 Portuguese and British police officers began searching the interior and grounds of a house 100m from the hotel from where she went missing three months ago.
The house, owned by Robert Murat, 33, was first searched 11 days after Madeleine disappeared.
British sniffer dogs had found traces that indicated a body had been buried in the garden of the villa.
Mr Murat has been questioned by police several times.
Meanwhile, in Belgium, police were investigating a report by a woman who said she saw the child with an English-speaking woman and a Dutch man in a restaurant near the Dutch border.
August 5th, 2007 at 9:05 pm
yes, nr. 342, I thought of that before and I am not the only one. But it was so terrible to agree with it!!!!!
But what about the perfect way getting rid of the body? So well planned in a couple of hours, after have gotten in panic with an unexpected dead child?
They don’t know Portugal that well, they are tourists.
August 5th, 2007 at 8:22 pm
According to the Portuguese news paper Correio da Manha, 5th August, the two sniffer English dogs detected a smell of a corps in the Madeleine’s apartment and also in other apartment in the same building.This happened some days ago.The news paper explains that a corps starts to emanate death odour after at least two hours after the death, generally between 2 and 4 hours after the person died. The news paper comments also that the PJ are in Murats home right now probably to innocent him. This could be the final fase of Murat’s investigation.If Madeleine died in the apartment and stayed there at least two hours after her death, how come the parents did not notice it in one of the 30 minutes checks? Do you believe the abductor was stealing a corps?(Sick, isn’t he?). It seems that there were friends of the Mccann’s who arrived in Portugal one week before the Mccanns arrived there.Who are they? Were they all planning something against the little girl? It is so well planned, very difficult to believe it was improvised immediately after her death-getting rid of her body-. The police would have found her body by now. What happened to the dear tiny Madeleine during her very short life?
August 5th, 2007 at 8:12 pm
Dare I say it ,in the light of what has just been said in the previous posting,(number421) look at posting 342, and wonder??? I am not casting aspersions or blame but have been following this case very carefully and read all the opinions.
Please God, let Maddie come home safe.
August 4th, 2007 at 3:13 pm
2 sniffer dogs from a British Police detachment, have found the scent of a dead person in the McCanns apartment according to the Sol newspaper. allegedly
We await further developments…..
August 4th, 2007 at 10:02 am
I think it odd that he can plan his campaign and events to mark her 100th missing day. How does he know, she will still be missing?
Seems callous to me.
August 3rd, 2007 at 8:04 pm
I do blame the Mccans for their daughters disappearance and have my suspicions about their innocence in it. But if they weren’t involved in this ‘kidnapping’ i dont dont blame them for doing anything to get her back, they have to or how can they live with what they have done. But isn’t it odd they want all this publicity because Ive read so many experts who say that it could drive the abductor deeper underground and making him hide or kill her so not to be caught. so either Mccann has 1)some lousy advisors, 2) is ignoring world renowned experts do or 3)there is something between him and the police that we of course dont know about whereby they want him doing it. but 1) with all the fund money i doubt it 2) ignoring their warnings because he knows it wont matter since shes not going to be found. or because he thinks he knows better then them 3) i hope so
August 3rd, 2007 at 4:56 pm
Hi Miss Marple
I like the way you think.
July 31st, 2007 at 4:59 pm
who knows the whereabouts of Murat an the Russian Malinka? Is Malinka still in Portugal?
July 30th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
odd, very odd. Maybe the whole story is not at all what we think.Their money, their capacity of manipulation, their political power.
Who knows Madeleine is alive and well and the parents know it.
Is money playing the hugest role?
Who is behind all this?
July 30th, 2007 at 6:45 pm
Good heavens, where is he getting all the money from?
He said they are not rich but they have rich friends.
I really don’t believe their friends are paying all these expenses.
Who are the Mccanns?
Do they come from Sicilia?
July 30th, 2007 at 4:38 pm
The fund is a mere drop in the ocean compared to the Website. Think of all the advertising and hits the website gets and then you might come to the real figure.
July 30th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
Do the Madeleine Funds have indeed such a huge amount of money like Gerry is publishing? About 942.000 pounds, getting an avarage of more than 10.000 pounds per day since Madaleine disappeared?
Can he explain how he is using this money?
July 29th, 2007 at 6:05 pm
was Madaleine in the apartment on that evening and who saw her on the late afternoon, before all them went back to the apartment?
Does anyone of you know about eventual last publications of the PJ?
July 29th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
My partner & me have a really busy restaurant with a flat above that we used to live in with our 2 children. It was right above the restaurant with only access from the kitchen (ie not accessible to the general public). You cannot believe the number of times I had to cover sickness / staff not turning up / deal with customer complaints etc and every time I had to work I got a babysitter to look after my children (aged 4 & 6 at the time). Even though I was just downstairs there is no way I would have left when they were asleep & unable to help themselves them however desperate it was for me to sort out whatever crisis was going on downstairs.
Even when we go on holiday we make sure we stay in a house / hotel that has a family room or somewhere we can sit next door and have a drink. Sometimes we have not gone out together to eat because the kids have fallen asleep.
It is totally irresponsible & stupid to leave small children alone. There are so many dangers and they get into trouble very quickly. They cannot be heard if they wake up from that distance so what are they supposed to do if something goes wrong. That is the responsibility of the parents - to protect their children from danger & a sleeping child is extremely vulnerable. They should admit that they made a huge mistake leaving ALL their children like that and acknowledge that it is not acceptable behaviour for any parent to do that. My son & all his friends on his birthday went to see Shrek 3 and saw that ridiculous advert (try explaining that one to a load of curious kids). What a stupid waste of money
July 29th, 2007 at 8:46 am
I agree that any normal parent would indeed be going through hell. But omg these two have never looked better ! In every photo I’ve seen of them over the last 4 weeks they’ve looked smiling and relaxed and tanned and hey even lovely new highlights for Kate ! Yes you’re right Rosita when you say if it had been you this was happening to, that you would have gone insane by now. That’s the whole point. NORMAL human behaviour is that, yes, you would be slowly driven insane with this…..not knowing day in or day out if your precious child was at the hands of a child rapist being subjected to a living hell day in and day out…..or even if she was still alive. I want you to look at this site and scroll down the page until you come to the latest photo of how “insane” the McCanns are being driven. Doesn’t look like an insane bunch to me…..quite the opposite. And don’t try and tell me that this is only one simple picture and the rest of the time they spend weeping and wailing. Every single shot lately is of Gerry with that same grin on his face. My goodness, when he was in the Washington headquarters looking at the board of children’s photographs who are missing and he spotted the picture of Madeleine, he pointed and said “oh look I know that one”. I ask you, what sort of comment is that?!?
Scroll down on this link until you get to the picture:
http://ionglobaltrends.blogspot.com/
All I can say is that poor, poor child. How dare these parents be elevated to the pedastal that they have been put on….almost as heroes. So so sad.
July 28th, 2007 at 4:58 pm
It’s one tragedy on top of another in this McCann Circus. The PJ should not even be tagging Murat as the prime suspect. Why are they allowing leaks from the Tapas Nine? To feed the anti-Murat mob frenzy is why.
If they really believe that then arrest him on suspicion of kidnapping.
IOW, piss or get off the pot.
Meanwhile $$$Gerry$$$ and $$$Kate$$$ are handling the $$$campaign$$$ like a celebration and encouraging tacky events that I see as completely inappropriate in this circumstance. Thank you UK press. You not only allowed this but condoned and encouraged it. What would Madeleine say? What would Madeleine want? This is a tragedy beyond anything I could have ever imagined.
American journalist Chris Freind is spot on here in this published article:
“McCann’s Parents Love Being Globe-Trotting Celebrities” July 27, 2007
http://tinyurl.com/2clrmz
It’s almost absurd to me why UK citizens haven’t taken to the streets in protest. The $$$McCanns$$$ have pulled off the Scam of the Century — and they sacrificed their very own daughter to do that.
Where is Madeleine? Do her parents even care?
Why didn’t they *ever* search themselves?
Why haven’t they hired their own PI’s with donors (suckers) money?
WHY are Gerry and Kate holding circus-like events and globe trotting?
WHY are they selling plastic bracelets which WILL NOT find Madeleine.
When will copies of CuddleCat be available on the Scam Site?
(Kate, enough already carrying the campaign prop around — same goes for the yellow and green sundress, bracelets, balloons — what did you think? Those props weren’t blatently obvious tactics to get more suckers to fund your retirement and ‘claim’ to fame — your MISSING DAUGHTER. Gerry, at least I give you credit. You finally can spell MADELEINE right on your blog these days.)
SHAME ON YOU TWO!
When I think of Madeleine I see $$$Gerry and Kate McCann$$$.
When I think of her twin baby siblings, I wonder WHO is taking care of them to prevent another tragedy?
How low will $$$Gerry and Kate$$$ stoop?
If the past is any indication of the future then I strongly believe people start better worrying about the twins.
You McDonors, I almost feel sorry for you as you’ve been duped and will continue to be so until Madeleine is found and long, long after. Gerry and Kate McCann are Frauds. A fool and his money is soon parted. How many of you fools will continue to financially support the greedy and shameless $$$McCanns$$$? Almost funny how easily suckered you were.
July 28th, 2007 at 1:32 pm
Clare, you are right. We have to concentrate now on finding Madeleine.If the same would have happened to one of my children, I would have gone insane by now.The Mccanns are experiencing now the most terrible moments they have ever experience in their lives. They are suffering every moment of the day.I can’t think of it.
I hope the media are not going that far, criticising them. It is no use. It happened already, nobody can change it.
I also hope that the media wait for the results of the investigations on Murat.
Who knows he is innocent and the man that the witnesses saw was a compleetely different person?
July 28th, 2007 at 9:52 am
There is a lot of criticism of the Mcann’s in the media now and it seems to be getting a little out of control. When I was on holiday I was nicknamed the ‘Sniper’ because even when I left my kids into the kiddy camps I sat at a location where they were constantly in view. I never let them out of my sight. But that didnt stop my little three year old slipping my hand and doing a runner literally in seconds and disappearing into a crowd one day. I can honestly say it was the worst 10 minutes of my life it was like she just vanished. Luckily we found her but the fear that she could have been snatched in that couple of minutes was unbelievable.
Why should anyone have this fear?
Why should criminals be able to do this to us?
Why are we focussing on the parents now at a time when we have
a chance to change things like this and instead focus on the
criminals?
What are we doing about it that is going to make this world better for our children
Okay the Mcanns did something fraught with danger as we have seen. They are paying the ultimate price. I think that whatever good can come of this can only be done if we concentrate on the helping them to find their little girl first afterall there have been some very good developments in getting agencies to work together and bring them under some form of umbrella group. I just feel that the important issue is that all efforts are fight now concentrated on finding Madeleine and for now lay off the parents while they are concentrating on finding her. When the investigation has been finalised then there will be plenty of time for focussing on the parents.
July 27th, 2007 at 7:22 pm
On his blog, Gerry has told a couple of times, that the distance from the tapas bar and the apartment is 50 yards.In Portugal (maybe even the police) they say 100, sometimes 150 meters.One meter has 100 centimeters. One yard has 91 centimeters( a little more). 50 yards would be 45, 46 meters.Gerry told they could see the apartment from the restaurant and this is not true.Mrs Mccann told about the missing of Madeleine on different ways.Why are they lying? Because they are scared and they have the right to be. They are scared to be accused by Justice of child neglect and to lose the twins.I would have tried the same, if I would be in the same situation.
Murat denied the phone contact with Malinka on that night. Why? He was also scared to get in trouble.The police proved they had contact with each other.
Why do people accept Gerry’s stories and why people are judging Murat?
They are all lying, they are all scared, for different reasons, but they are. The answer is: the media are in favor of the Mccanns and against Murat.
Does Murat have not the same right the Mccanns have, the right to be scared?
July 27th, 2007 at 3:06 pm
Please give Madeleine back
July 26th, 2007 at 10:27 am
On an old news paper(site) I read that Gerry had a vision in a church in Praia da Luz, which he interpretated as a sign to start Madeleine Funds and he started it. I don’t mind he had a vision. What worries me is that he not only told around about his vision, but also it seems that people believed him, or perhaps they didn’t.
Now I really fear Gerry is not psychological balanced. If he is able “to tell “about such a religious revelation, he will be also able to change the whole story that happened that night.And he will be the first one to believe his own words.I don’t believe he is that healthy.
July 26th, 2007 at 1:35 am
Is Murat really the suspect one?I heard from Portugueses that the media in Portugal are not talking about the case anymore, since a long time. Yes, O”Brian and Jane: they are the ones who went back to Algarve short ago to be questioned again by the PJ.As witnesses, I understood.After they left, the PJ talked about two hours with the MCcanns.I truely believe they were questioned. yes, Anne, perhaps O Brian and Jane have to do with the disapearence. Or they know more than they were telling. What do you all know about Murat? I have not much of an idea.I don’
t believe he took part in the game.Murat has only one alibi:his mother. The party group, 8, 9 or 11 people, (how many?) each of them has at least 7,8,10 alibis.Possibly they could be protecting each other.Why Gerry did not talk about that night? The PJ forbide involved people to talk as long investigations are ongoing.That is the law in Portugal.I ask myself why the Mccanns are not visiting the villages in Algarve, talking to the population, farmers, garbage men, asking for their support by looking around trying to find Madeleine’s pijamas, etc., on fields and woods. Eventually (God forbid) Madeleine’s grave.Every human being has the right of a decent funeral and a grave.It would be the most logical search.But those people are from humble origin and Gerry is a name-dropper.People who are close to him and that know him well must know he is megalomaniac and probably narcisist.May God bless Madeleine, the poor girl.
July 25th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
I think the McCanns will find a great feeling of sympathy for Maddy but not for themselves in the USA . I lived there and americans dont ‘pull their punches’ like here in Britain. and i read that they are distressed over the ’suggestion’ that anyone might attach any blame to them and i wonder how they will feel when its not a suggestion but a full blown accusation? but it is sad for Maddy that the man the McCanns are going to see says that if a child isn’t found within 3 hrs there’s only a 35% chance it will be found alive. Poor Maddy.
July 25th, 2007 at 12:56 pm
Maybe this Obrian character just didnt fancy going out with a load of drunks that night. Or maybe he has kids and decided to stay in his apartment with them. It was their last night wasn’t it? he might have wanted a god nights sleep. So why should he be a suspect just because he didnt go out that night. I do think its interesting that Mr McCann is going to the USA to see whats being done to keep children safe from abduction. talk bout locking the stable door. here another really wild theory. a person is attracted to Mady, reminds him or her of a child they lost or any something, sees they leave her unattended so goes in the apartment, maybe not even to take her. realise shes been drugged (the sleepwalking bit) decide they arnt fit parents for this special child and so take her away. Why dont the McCanns just admit they were wrong that person might return the child. A wild theory but no more than anyother I’ve read here. i even find the idea of abduction a wild one site.
July 25th, 2007 at 5:06 am
The Exeter thing: incriminating if O’Brien and Murat’s sister live in the same village but possibly a coincidence if they both live in Exeter.
Something else about O’Brien - isn’t he the McCann friend who made quite a brusque remark when asked about the McCann group’s propensity to drink quite a lot when they went out to eat? I remember thinking at the time when I first read it - how strange to be brusque and slightly rude in the context of an event where a child has disappeared? Wouldn’t the tone of a normal reaction in an even of this type to be more likely to be grief and empathy-ridden rather than rude and defensive?
And another thing - the McCanns’ ‘control of all information’ about what happened that night? I cannot think of a single reason why they would need to control any information about what happened that night. Information about Madeleine, yes, but why the need to to control any information about that night unless you had something to hide?
July 25th, 2007 at 1:23 am
I’ve just been doing a bit of online sleuthing and have found an interesting possibility:
Russell O’Brien, one of the McCann friends, was absent during the whole meal that night. Jane Tanner (his partner) arrived at the meal late. They both live in Exeter or in a village near Exeter. Robert Murat’s sister also lives either in the same village or in Exeter. Murat visited his sister just before returning to Portual a couple of days before Madeleine disappeared. Could this ‘third party connection’ be between O’Brien and Murat? And why was O’Brien not present at the meal?
A theory: O’Brien took Madeleine, while Tanner concocted the story implicating Murat. But if this is what happened, why???