
Madeleine McCann: Suspects Kate And Gerry And The Flight Of Fancy
MADDYWATCH - Anorak’s at-a-glance guide to press coverage of Madeleine McCann.
THE SUN front page: “EXCLUSIVE – ‘We’re being set up. I’ve had enough. Let’s go home.’” This is the “ANGER OF MADDIE DAD.”
Gerry and Kate McCann, “the doctors”, are back in their home town of Rothley, Leicestershire.
Pages 4, 5, 6 & 7: A statement from Gerry McCann in which he thanks one and all for the support and adds: “But we would like to ask for our privacy to be respected now that we have returned home.”
But their private grief is public spectacle. Can they be left alone with their daughter still missing and their campaign to find her in progress?
“YOU’LL LOSE THE TWINS.” Portuguese police are said to have told Kate McCann she should confess or face losing her two children.
“FACT OR FIT-UP?” The Sun considers the claims and gives each an “EXPLANATION.”
THE SUN SAYS: “McCanns’ hell”. The McCann’s “torment gets more horrendous by the day.” Where is the “kidnapper who might still have the four-year-old child in his clutches?”
THE TIMES front page: “McCanns fly home to fights their case.”
Mr McCann says the police’s focus on them is “deeply disturbing”.
Portuguese newspapers claim the McCanns failed to answer 40 questions put to them during interviews last week. “They apparently feared that they could wrongly implicate themselves if he [sic] did so.”
Pages 6 & 7: “Puzzles and mysteries at the very heart of the investigation.”
The paper tries to answer some of these questions. It tells us: “Although a small child could be killed quickly it would take time to hide the body so that it was not discovered in the biggest search in Portuguese history.”
The paper’s David Brown does not reveal how he researched this. He just knows.
The window to the McCanns apartment might have been opened from the inside. Brown of the Wapping Yard concludes: “Or was the window opened to make it appear as if an intruder had used it to enter the bedroom?”
Hmmm. What say you Mr Brown?
DAILY MAIL front page: “Police are determined to charge McCanns with killing Madeleine. HOME…FOR HOW LONG?”
Mr McCann is said to have told a friends: “We are being completely stitched up by the Portuguese police. We are completely f*****. We should have seen this coming weeks ago and gone back to Britain.”
Pages 2 and 3: “Madeleine’s parents consult Pinochet’s lawyer.” The McCanns have consulted with Michael Caplan QC, the British lawyer who represented Chilean dictator General Pinochet, who stood accused to torture and human rights abuses. Interesting?
Pages 4 & 5: “Questions the police must answer.”
The paper wonders if Robert Murat was named as a suspect in the hope his presence might “lead the couple into committing an incriminating indiscretion?” Or not.
In attempting to answer the key questions, the Mail produces more questions.
And the evidence..? The paper’s Michael Hanson wonders just how “foolproof” forensic tests are. You can’t argue with the science. Or can you?
DAILY MIRROR front page: “Kate weeps in Maddy’s room.”
The paper’s “EXCLUSIVE” is that Kate McCann sat alone in Madeleine’s “pink-painted room” and “sobbed in despair”.
How does it know this?
A friend says: “They are not running and will clear their names.”
Pages 4 & 5: Four pictures of the McCanns: arriving at Faro airport; boarding a flight,;on the plane getting ready for take off; and walking to their family home in Rothley.
Pages 6 & 7: “40 questions they both ‘refused’ to answer’.” And: “Officers say her replies left a lot to be desired, ‘it was claimed.’”
“McCANNS FACE KILLING CHARGE.”
“WHY COPS THINK SHE WAS NOT ABDUCTED.”
Page 9: Brian Reade has a daughter the same age as Madeleine McCann. Brian, who writes for the Mirror, has found it “impossible to imagine the depth of pain and guilt”. Without a body, says Brian, “They may never be able to prove their total and complete innocence.”
DAILY EXPRESS front page: “MADELEINE ‘WE CAN PROVE PARENTS DID IT.’ Portuguese police make dramatic new claim over evidence.”
Pages 2, 3 4, 5: The paper’s Martin Evans is on flight EZY 6552. He sees the McCanns travel home. He experiences “first hand…Kate’s pain and anguish on that most difficult of journeys”.
The seatbelts sign goes off. A note is passed to Kate. It is from another passenger. Kate reads the “simple message” of support. “A female passenger kneels by Kate and gives her a “tight hug.”
Kate sobs, “tears dripping slowly down her cheeks”.
Page 6: “Questions for the McCanns.” The Express has a go at solving the mystery. It says “Case could hang over us for ever say parents”.
DAILY STAR front page: “Maddie’s parents surprise flight.” Flight?
Pages 6 & 7: “We’re not running away.”
Page 7: More from Martin Evans, who sees the McCanns’ “pained expressions”.
Pages 8 & 9: “Furious donors want cash back as pressure mounts on friends to reveal all. DAD: I’LL USE £1M MADDIE FUND TO CLEAR OUR NAMES.”
DAILY TELEGRAPH front page: “Year-long wait for McCanns to clear name.”
Says Kate McCann: “Portuguese law prohibits us from commenting on the police investigation. Despite their being so much we wish to say we are unable to do so except to say this: we have played no part in the disappearance of our lovely daughter Madeleine.”
Page 4: “Couple facing a ‘life sentence of grief’.”
THE GUARDIAN front page: “Exhausted and under suspicion, Madeleine’s family come home.”
Pages 2, 4 & 5: “Rothley villagers relieved to see family return.”
“Thank goodness. They’re back where they belong and it’s the best place they could possibly be,” says one young mother.
The Rev Mark Chandler adds: “My every sense tells me that Rothley is just pleased and relieved to have them back.”
THE INDEPENDENT front page: “130 days since they left for a family holiday, the McCanns return to Britain without Madeleine. This is “THE HOMECOMING”.
Pages 2 & 3: “A shattered family returns to Britain without Madeleine”. “Portugal’s media clamour for conviction”.
Says one mother holidaying in Praia da Luz: “You don’t want to believe the worst but when you read headlines like these [in Portuguese media], obviously one conclusion seems more likely than another.”
Says the Diario de Noticia: “PJ wait for final examinations to arrest Madeleine’s parents.”
Madeleine McCann: private grief as public spectacle
Posted: 10th, September 2007 | In: Madeleine McCann Comments (1,280) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
Comments





September 10th, 2007 at 10:52 pm
Oh Penster …. yuk … re the ice trays!
September 10th, 2007 at 10:52 pm
987. Angry. I agree with you about the seeming lack of emotion shown by the McCanns.
I realise that people react in different ways but their apparant lack of emotion juxtaposed with the bright clothes, blog, jogging etc jar with me.
If one of my daughters had gone missing and I truly believed her to be alive I would have a beard down to my knees and my clothes would have holes in them because my existance would be put on hold until I found her.
The McCanns say they need to keep it together for the sake of the twins, but they have extended family who could have taken the children back to the UK, or failing that why did they both have to return? Couldn’t the father have stayed behind to help the police or help in search parties etc?
I know that if I believed my missing child was alive in a foreign country I would not leave until I knew the truth, good or bad.
Even if I became a suspect along the way. Which anybody who watches tv, reads a newspaper or reads a book knows is bound to happen at some point anyway. Unless there is definitive evidence of third party involvment or a third party is found at the scene or soon after.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:50 pm
Just checked news, apparently Madeleine’s blood was found in the boot and is a perfect match but the car was hired a month after she went missing. Sniffer dogs were called in promptly after she went missing and would have found the body in the days following if it was close by. And as for the freezer theory, how many holiday apts have anything bigger than a mini bar? Perhaps they carved her up and filled the ice trays? 25 day old dead bodies dont bleed. Who had that car prior to the Mccanns - didn’t that other couple in the party have it? Perhaps the blood was in the boot b/c it was on her clothes when they transferred their belongings to the new accommodation.
I’m suspicious that making the parents arguidos is not the end game here.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:50 pm
(832) And justice etc
“They had no life insurance policy on her either I read. So, it’s not like they came to Portugal claiming to kill her”
Erm… precisely. Which is why they are insisting she was “abducted” by the Griffin
September 10th, 2007 at 10:50 pm
Wow Christoph you got a fan, Whodathunkit.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:49 pm
You DID it! (1000) Go girl ….. LOL
September 10th, 2007 at 10:48 pm
YEAH!!
Kate’s father invovled??? I can’t imagine that….oh, no. That’s going to be horrible if it’s true. This poor little girl. How awful!!
I’m going out to get my own slushie now. And I’ll spike with a shot of Stoli too.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:46 pm
Can I be post 1000??
September 10th, 2007 at 10:46 pm
Pete - You have a very nice demeanor. Believe it or not, I really do like men. And I particulary like you. You sound like a mature man - someone that I can and do respect.
Unlike Blunger. Who is rude and crys wolf, holds personal vendettas and grudges and threatens to reveal people’s IP addresses which he has no access to.
Even Christoph, I have more respect for than Blunger.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:45 pm
Good …. looks like he’s ducked for a “Slushie”.
(987) Angry. Thank you for that link.
I watched it and it just reaffirms everything that I have previously said about the McCann’s behaviour. Doing the voluntary work that I do, you start to learn to read people’s behaviour. This is the FIRST thing that I noticed about the McCann’s …. their attempt to withdraw from the reality of the situation that they had caused!
September 10th, 2007 at 10:45 pm
Yes Moriarty Sorry I have a blinding headache.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:44 pm
Haven’t got my Slushie yet.
So you’re saying the Portuguese police were more competent than the British? Than the British politicians anyway?
Whodathunkit.
And what Jackass in the British government was pressing for the abduction theory two hours after the disappearance.
WHY would they think they should interfere with a police investigation at all? Why so soon?
WHO — properly or improperly — convinced them to do this?
It’s a scandal. I don’t say that lightly.
And the honesty of free countries’ police forces — including Portugal’s — should be commended hands-down.
Justice, that was a stupid argument, especially considering you’re right except for the degree of magnitude in your stats.
Back to above… someone should investigate this. Something untoward happened and not just in Portugal.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:43 pm
I agree about the suicide watch line - if one or both of them are sociopaths, it would be the ultimate act of control over events, accompanied by a letter blaming the Portugese police for pushing them into this.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:40 pm
986 - it is an effective technique for stopping argumentative children, only I didn’t think anyone would listen if I said ‘rotten egg’ or ‘big fat pig’.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:38 pm
So - lets review
We now have a “full match” in the hire car.
Making “solid evidence” that M’s body was in it “5 weeks” (I thought it was 25 days) after the McCanns claim she disappeared.
We have “other people” involved, presumably from the intercepts, and presumably in helping to dispose of the body. Including now Kate’s father !
If there is any truth in all this, it is going to enter the annals of famous crimes.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:38 pm
Christoph says - “Now I’m gonna go get a Slushie”
Can u make that two? I can smoke a peace pipe with you, but I’d rather chug a slushie. I love the brain freezes that occur. Makes me wild and crazy with cold thoughts.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:38 pm
988. Do you have a link to this story?
I wonder why the British Ambassador to Portugal would get involved in anyway?
———————-
Mods and Admin
they do when any Brit abroad is in trouble, one of the reasons they are there
September 10th, 2007 at 10:37 pm
(897) Angry
It is Actus Reas and Mens Reas
September 10th, 2007 at 10:37 pm
has this already been posted?
Kate and Gerry McCann are to be questioned by social workers about the welfare of their twins, Sean and Amelie, at a face-to-face meeting later this week, The Times has learnt.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:34 pm
It was reported in the portugese press a caouple of weeks agao, that the Portugese were surprised by the pressure initally applied UK government. They stated that 2 hours after the Mccann’s had reported Maddie missing, the Chief of Police had to interupt a dinner party to take a phone call from the British Ambassador in Portugal, and that it was made clear during that call that bristish Government wanted the Portugese to follow the ‘abduction’ theory.
This pressure only subsided when the UK police got involved with the case, and passed back up the UK chain of command the opinion that the Portugese did indeed have a reason to be concerned with the abduction theory provided by the Mccann’s.
The PJ were said to be furious that the British Government had intervened at a early stage to force the investigation down the ‘abduction’ route. They said that this had set back the investigation. Only when the British police became involved and agreed with the PJ, did they begin to get support from the British Government to widen the scope of the investigation.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:33 pm
For the non UK participants in this forum.
A lot has been said about the McCanns emotions. Those who think they have been emotive in their own way would do well to take a look at the following link, (play the video).
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30100-1283385,00.html
It’s about a 15 year old girl from Hampshire who disappeared after a row last week, but the emotion of the father at the press conference shows the true emotions of a parent whose child is missing. By contrast, the McCanns emotions have been nothing in comparrison, hence the fact that I for one believe they had something to do with Madeline’s disappearence.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:32 pm
984 - Pete!!
OUCH…..that hurt.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
978 - Julie, he’s impossible.
I will rise above it as I’ve been doing here all along.
He’s baiting you and me. Because we are women perhaps?? I don’t know!
But let’s carry on w/ the Madeleine case.
What info do you have for us today? Anything new and different?
I would like to hear your thoughts on what is going to happen next.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
I guess the closest in terms of action would be a jerk-off, but not sure how good a translation that is.
asshole might be closer in some ways.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
And the reason for the delay you mentioned was I was finding the evidence YOU asked me to provide.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
Last one out turn out the lights.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
975 - What is a wanker?? LOL!
Sorry, I don’t speak the queen’s english.
And while you’re at it, there’s a few other words that escape me. I can send you the list when I come acorss it again.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
Back to the case in hand: the preview of tomorrow’s front pages on this prove we have reached a tipping point. And they are now ‘the McCanns’.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:28 pm
Whatever Julie, I will say what I want, where I want.
And I never “agreed to disagree” with you, Justice. That’s a lie.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:27 pm
Christoph …. I used to like you and SOME of your posts, but you’re really becoming quite obnoxious. PLEASE can you find some other forum that is discussing exactly what you wish to discuss.
I would like to discuss Madeleine’s case, and this is exactly the forum for it.
Mods & Admin …. Please I’m getting a bit offended by Christoph at the moment, and as he has asked me to get a Moderator, I am doing exactly that!