Madeleine McCann: Britney Spears, Lolita And Birthday Cards
MADDYWATCH - Anorak’s at-a-glance guide to press coverage of Madeleine McCann
DAILY MAIL: “Woolworths forced to withdraw LOLITA bedroom furniture range for girls”
The Lolita Midsleeper Combi, a wooden bed with pull-out desk and cupboard designed for girls aged around six, retails on the Woolworths website for £349.99
The name has “sexual connotations”. A “mother” sees it and writes: “Am I being particularly sensitive, or does anyone else out there think it’s bad taste for Woolies to have a kiddy bed range named ‘Lolita’?”
Well, you don’t have to buy it…
A spokesman for the company says: “What seems to have happened is the staff who run the website had never heard of Lolita, and to be honest no one else here had either. We had to look it up on Wikipedia. But we certainly know who she is now”
Trusting Wikipedia for information has its own dangers. (And look out for an article on the state of British education.) But no danger is bigger than a bed named, perhaps, in honour of a charcter in a novel by Vladimir Nabokov
Or Lolita Fatjo, pre-production coordinator for Star Trek
Or many other women called Lolita
“On-line parent power has been growing in recent years. In 2006 Tesco stopped selling a pole-dancing kit on its website over accusations it was destroying children’s innocence. And last summer an on-line campaign by Mumsnet resulted in a cinema advert about the disappearance of Madeleine McCann stopped from being screened before the children’s film Shrek the Third”
THE TIMES: “Staff at Woolworths baffled by fuss over the little girl’s bed called Lolita”
“Woolworths has withdrawn bedroom furniture for young girls bearing the sexually charged name Lolita after a campaign waged by a mothers’ online chat room”
An internal company e-mail seen by The Times goes: “As discussed, we’ve got the product below on our website. Can it be hidden as soon as is possible? Then I really need to find out how it came about being on our site and who bought it. Lolita is a word that means sexually active young teenagers, so a young girls’ range of bedroom products is in very poor taste. We’ve had an approach from a website who are clearly a little disturbed by this”
THE SUN: “Gift from Maddie for twins”
No, not furniture
“Twins Sean and Amelie McCann will get a special present from their missing sister Maddie today on their third birthday. Parents Kate and Gerry got the gift for the pair who, at three, are the same age as Maddie when she vanished last May”
Sad. But is it relevant to the case? Is it news?
Grandmother Eileen McCann tells us: “Of course Madeleine being there would be our dream but we’ll do our best to make sure the twins have a lovely day”
DAILY TELEGRAPH: “Card from Madeleine at McCann twins party”
The twins are getting a gift in the Sun…
“Gerry and Kate McCann will throw a birthday party for their twins tomorrow - complete with a card from their missing four-year-old daughter, Madeleine”
DAILY STAR: “MISSING MADDIE’S SPECIAL PREZZIE”
“Little Sean and Amelie McCann will open a special present from their big sister as they celebrate their third birthday today”
With a card?
Says Eileen McCann: “There will be presents galore, lots of fun and games, lots of food and a big cake. Of course, Madeleine being home would make it complete and we continue to pray for that blessing”
SUR (Spain): “Marbella suffer their first loss of the year against Linares”
A football match: “Wearing T-shirts to raise awareness of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann and Mari Luz Cortés, the children playing in the tournament accompanied the players onto the pitch as mascots at the beginning of the game”
RADAR: “Theater of Cruelty, Carnival of Souls”
“British rags hardly pretend to be providing straightforward news. What they are doing is what used to be the job of popular fiction; namely, processing myth out of characters sucked in from real life. Right now the cast list includes such durable regulars as Kate Moss—with or without Pete Doherty—Princes Harry and Wills, Posh and Becks, and Kate and Gerry McCann, whose daughter Madeleine’s kidnapping/disappearance in Portugal made them last year’s headliners”
ALISTAIR CAMPBELL (TIMES): Britney Spears: person or news commodity? She’s a great singer but obviously ill: we in the media have to decide to leave her alone”
Britney Spears and Madeleine McCann..?
“In some sections of the media, Madeleine McCann and her family are there. As I said in the Cudlipp Lecture on Tuesday, her disappearance was an interesting and important story, the stuff of every parent’s nightmare. But it quickly became a commodity in which most of the media got close to hysteria, and some have remained there. Let us not pretend the coverage was driven by concern for the child - there are many missing children - or compassion for the parents - certainly not once the mood shifted - or regard for the truth. It has been the worst example of recent times, on a par with Diana, of some newspapers thinking that the word “Madeleine” sells, and finding literally any old nonsense to keep her name in that selling position on the front”
THE GUARDIAN: “Mechanics of the McCann campaign - Professional media management may have generated coverage of Maddy’s disappearance, but it hasn’t helped with public sympathy for the family”
“Try as they might neither Clarence Mitchell nor Justine McGuinness could quite shake off the sense that the way they’ve managed this case might have contributed to some negative public sentiment towards the family. In place initially as what Mitchell described as “a buffer” between the shocked and distraught parents and the world’s media, hungry for news about Madeleine, it’s clear that what developed was a professional media management operation. With city PR firm Bell Pottinger on hand - primarily, we can assume, to defend the interests of their clients Mark Warner Holidays - as well as Justine and, latterly, Clarence with all their experience of Westminster spin, the McCanns could not have wanted for more professional advice. But as time went on media management itself - and once you’ve started feeding stories to the press to get control of the agenda, you really can’t stop - began generating negative reaction from other parties”
Madeleine McCann: Making news and sensation from grief
Posted: 1st, February 2008 | In: Madeleine McCann Comments (1,022) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
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February 1st, 2008 at 4:17 pm
608 Denzylle
The self publicist and pompous and pretentious pratt Sledgehammer likes to pretend that he is a part of the McCanns legal team.
His disruption of the site is a dissapointing reflection on the usually excellent offices of Anorak.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:15 pm
603
Lone Pigeon Says:
February 1st, 2008 at 4:10 pm
602
Sledgehammer Says:
February 1st, 2008 at 4:09 pm
Lone pigeon, the Crown Office is the main office of the UK government in Scotland, as opposed to the Scottish government. It houses the offices of the Procurator Fiscal, whose English counterpart is the CPS. More than that I will not say at this moment.
why not? Why won’t you say?
———————————-
Cos Sledgie’s a slow reader !
February 1st, 2008 at 4:15 pm
540 Stevo
Gets very interesting once you start following the money.
Wonder if there are any links between Bell P, COMARE & the PFI development for the expansion of Leics Health Trust?
February 1st, 2008 at 4:14 pm
I feel sorry for brandon of she has been trying to post today.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:14 pm
Denzylle,…………none.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:14 pm
Here’s a new email to the Madeleine Fund plus original to Bates Wells underneath:
Dear Madeleine’s Fund: Leaving No Stone Unturned Limited
On January 21, an email was sent to your solicitors, Bates Wells & Braithwaite. The email was sent after several unsuccessful attempts to contact the Fund by phone to ask some questions about the performance of the company.
The original email addressed to Ms McCarthy is copied below for reference.
As a donor to the fund we think it is not unreasonable to ask these kind of questions and get some straight answers.
Truth For Madeleine has sizeable list of disgruntled donors. It is only fair to answer these questions.
Thank you for your time.
Truth For Madeleine
Dear Ms McCarthy
I understand that your firm are the solicitors for Madeleine’s Fund: Leaving No Stone Unturned Limited. I also understand from your receptionist that you are the contact person within Bates Wells for this company. We have tried many times to contact you by phone at Bates Wells. Each time we get fobbed off. Today for example, I called you at 4:50pm and your receptionist told me she was putting me through to you. Moments later, the receptionist told me you were not at your desk and she patched me through to your voicemail.
Less than 5 minutes later, my colleague called you. My colleague was told “Ms McCarthy isn’t in today.”
Ms McCarthy, this kind of reaction only emphasises and amplifies the negative vibes that people are experiencing with the Madeleine Fund. If nobody is willing to speak to us regarding the company, we will persevere through whatever channels we have to. We would like to act professionally and get feedback from the company directly. Our primary aim is to find the truth about what happened to Madeleine McCann. We are also volunteering to be the voice of the many disgruntled donors to the fund. The company is either a bona fide and legitimate company who is aiming to complete its stated objectives or it is living up to the belief of many that it is some kind of scam. Up until now, the feedback we are experiencing is hardly helping to alleviate any thoughts that the Madeleine Fund is not acting professionally and with the integrity one would expect from a large, high-profile fund.
Other members of the public have written to Bates Wells and I know they have received what amounts to a standard response. This is not good enough. Poor elderly people as well as young children have made donations to the Madeleine Fund. Those people do not get their mortgages paid from a fund. They deserve better and they need to know what is happening from the horse’s mouth and not from tabloids.
On behalf of the many disgruntled donors to the fund, this website is requesting the following information:
1. Who can this site contact to request information about the fund and its use in accomplishing its stated objectives?
2. As the press seem to be misrepresenting the real facts of the use of the fund, can Bates Wells or Madeleine’s Fund’ make an official status report as to the use of the donated money?
3. How much of the fund has been used for personal expenses beyond the two stated mortgage payments to Mr & Mrs Gerry McCann?
4. Can a donor request a refund if the donor is not happy that the money was used for the stated objectives?
5. As the official Madeleine website does not give accurate information as to the fund total or its expenditure, can either Bates Wells or the company give an up to date figure for the fund total?
6. Who is in charge of the company on a day to day basis and who controls the operations?
7. What other companies were considered along with Metodo 3 before making a decision to recruit Metodo 3 to look for missing Madeleine and what arm’s length methods were used to choose this particular outfit?
8. Were any of the Bates Wells’ staff known to any of the Madeleine’s Fund board of directors prior to incorporation of the latter?
9. What are the current stated objectives of Madeleine’s Fund’?
10. What is the current board of directors?
Thank you for your time.
TruthForMadeleine
February 1st, 2008 at 4:14 pm
575
Harry Hind
So you didnt discover anything then!
Actually have military connections - its the ex pats that anger me.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:13 pm
cmon folks i am getting bored cant we play hunt the monster
February 1st, 2008 at 4:12 pm
http://www.crownoffice.gov.uk/ In the interests of avoiding confusion Lone Pigeon.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:12 pm
What jurisdiction would the Scottish Crown Office have over this matter?
February 1st, 2008 at 4:11 pm
Happy Birthday, Karen. It’s all up hill now!
February 1st, 2008 at 4:11 pm
605
Matt. Says:
February 1st, 2008 at 4:10 pm
+++++++++
white bait
February 1st, 2008 at 4:10 pm
603…Lone Pigeon
Red herring.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:10 pm
602
Sledgehammer Says:
February 1st, 2008 at 4:09 pm
Lone pigeon, the Crown Office is the main office of the UK government in Scotland, as opposed to the Scottish government. It houses the offices of the Procurator Fiscal, whose English counterpart is the CPS. More than that I will not say at this moment.
why not? Why won’t you say?
February 1st, 2008 at 4:09 pm
Lone pigeon, the Crown Office is the main office of the UK government in Scotland, as opposed to the Scottish government. It houses the offices of the Procurator Fiscal, whose English counterpart is the CPS. More than that I will not say at this moment.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:08 pm
http://www.crownofficechambers.com/cvs.asp?id=54
February 1st, 2008 at 4:08 pm
The Crown Office is only for Scotland - still, this site is no stranger to discussions about the wholly irrelevant
February 1st, 2008 at 4:07 pm
More likely, Crown Office Chambers:
http://www.crownofficechambers.com/
February 1st, 2008 at 4:07 pm
Guide to Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service
The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) is responsible for the prosecution of crime in Scotland, the investigation of sudden or suspicious deaths, and the investigation of complaints against the police. We work closely with our partners in the criminal justice system to help make Scotland a safer place.
Strategic Aim
Our strategic aim is to serve the public interest, prosecuting cases independently, fairly and effectively.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:07 pm
Hmnnn John Cooper crops up here
http://www.crownofficechambers.com/latest-news-display.asp?id=159
Latest News
HSE v HTM - 31/01/2008
John Cooper and Simon Antrobus successfully represented the company in a case of fundamental importance described in Redgrave as “central and controversial”.
The jury returned verdicts of not guilty on the company yesterday.
The trial, which commenced on 2nd January 2008, involved a tragic double fatality and the employer (HTM) had been charged along with the principal contractor. The principal contractor awaits sentence.
Further details can be obtained from contacting John or Simon via the clerks.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:07 pm
594…clouseau
Red herring.
February 1st, 2008 at 4:07 pm
Brandon Flours - Glad you got to see the card I posted, hope you are back on again soon and not spammed out all day
February 1st, 2008 at 4:05 pm
is the Crown Office for Scotland only?
February 1st, 2008 at 4:05 pm
I’m sure the Crown Office is a SCOTTISH legal body, unless the poster is referring to a Prtuguese agency which maybe translates to that!?!
Still doesn’t really explain anything!
February 1st, 2008 at 4:05 pm
588
Carmen Says:
February 1st, 2008 at 4:04 pm
MODS AND ADMIN
Brandon Flours, if you are listening - I’ve just released another three postings of yours from Spam….I really am sorry, I don’t know why it is doing this to you, and on your birthday of all days, it’s very unkind.
Yes it is
February 1st, 2008 at 4:04 pm
588
Carmen Says:
February 1st, 2008 at 4:04 pm
++++++++++++++++
Maybe too little too late!
February 1st, 2008 at 4:04 pm
http://www.crownoffice.gov.uk/
February 1st, 2008 at 4:04 pm
http://www.crownoffice.gov.uk/
February 1st, 2008 at 4:03 pm
What is this Crown Office that you speak of - I know of some fairly unremarkable sets of barristers chambers situate a Crown Office Row, in the Temple - but who or what is this Crown Office?
February 1st, 2008 at 4:01 pm
565 stevo
Sort of - that’s one poss.
But what if that’s the story G told the drug company because he knew it would freak them out and that it would bring help in the cover up.
but in fact she died at G or K’s hand. I’m trying to be clear but in rush.
Gerry lied to the drug company! She didn’t die as a result of the sedative whether widely used or a test. he roped them into his cover up.
Got to go.