Madeleine McCann: Reading Amaral’s Book, Free Speech And Elvis
MADDIE WATCH - Anorak’s at-a-glance guide to press coverage of Madeleine McCann, Kate McCann and Gerry McCann…
THE GUARDIAN: “On the front line in the search for Maddie - Gonçalo Amaral’s intriguing memoir of the Madeleine McCann case offers no solution but reveals a man obsessed by the investigation”
Ned Temko is reading Amaral’s book:
It is a shame that this revealing memoir from Gonçalo Amaral, the police chief who ran the Madeleine McCann investigation until he was unceremoniously fired last year, has not been published in English…
Indeed it is. And a disappointment that no British paper has sought to serialise the work. Aren’t we interested in what the copper thinks? Or are we too scared to publish it? What of free speech, then?
Wouldn’t any reader of sound mind dismiss slights against the McCanns’ involvement?
Within minutes of its appearance in Portuguese bookshops, the McCanns’ spokesman let it be known their lawyers would be giving it a thorough read, with an eye to the kind of libel action that ended up costing the Express group £500,000 earlier this year. And that was before the Portuguese authorities finally cleared the couple last month of any suspicion.
We’ve been scared off. But:
Surely it won’t be long before enterprising translators feed the juicier bits to an online conspiracy community that, in the 15 months since the cherubic three-year-old went missing from Praia da Luz, has elevated Madeleine into something close to a new Elvis.
Has she been seen in America?
Or in the phrase Amaral prefers to use, with no evident trace of irony, in the book’s acknowledgements: ‘cybernauts and bloggers who have been defending the cause of truth and justice.’
Or just proclaiming themselves “pro” or “anti” McCann, as if that helps:
Yet even for those of us who happen to believe that Elvis is no more, the book offers a page-turning compendium of unexplained puzzles - as are so frequently found in wide-ranging, complex investigations.
LIVERPOOL ECHO: “Why we shouldn’t be frightened of the big, wide world”
Fiona Ennys plays Tabloid Bingo! Eyes down…
CATHERINE Mullany’s murder on the ‘paradise’ island of Antigua was awful and tragic.
Tick!
People like me who, until the expansion of package travel in the 1960s never saw further than perhaps Blackpool or Scarborough, now have the opportunity to visit supremely exotic destinations like Asia and Africa.
And..?
And it’s fantastic.
Phew! Go on…
It’s so easy to be lulled into a false sense of security when you are on holiday; the family of little Madeleine McCann know, only too painfully, about that.
Tick!
THE SUNDAY TIMES: “Big Yin on a voyage to explore big waste - Billy Connolly is recreating the Arctic journeys of two great pioneers for ITV”
ITV approached Connolly as part of its drive to get more factual “big access pieces” for the 8pm-9pm slots following on from the success of documentaries on JK Rowling and Madeleine McCann.
That’s entertainment (sha-la-la-la-la)…
Posted: 3rd, August 2008 | In: Broadsheets, Madeleine McCann, Tabloids Comments (284) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
Comments
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August 3rd, 2008 at 1:22 pm
Hey Carmen… I never said where I’d read the questions and deliberately didn’t give a link. Couldn’t have stopped laughing long enough to do that anyway! (sorry!)
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:21 pm
jo
Hi jo, how are you?
Iv”e just been reading about this Guardianship business and think it is a mistinterpretation. Madeleine was made a Ward of Court on the advice of a QC
because she is a British Citizen who disappeared in a Foreign Country and gave the
High Court, as her Guardians ,power to take responsibility.
There is reference to a Court Case in 2006 which I know nothing about, which
supposedly relates to this. Also, again, the theory that Madeleine is Autistic which
I do not believe. the 48 Questions are available, courtesy of CdM on 3a”s……..too
much highlighting for me !!!!!! HaHa
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:21 pm
With real sausages, of course…
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:18 pm
i agree val. a protest march with a fire in a 44 gallon drum, everyone in fagan gloves and a tray truck with a loud speaker and a sausage sizzle just so it’s legal
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:17 pm
Rasputin, it is possible to ask a 18 months old child to answer a question and to get an answer.
A child can answer it walking to a place and pointing to it, to a window, a door, imitate what he saw.
You can ask “Where is Maddy?” and he would performance what he remembers and saw.
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:12 pm
Carmen
I think this new Format is dreadful and the old one much better. Can”t we subscribers
sign a petition or something to voice our protest and maybe go back to the old Format?
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:09 pm
Rasputin…. I’ve just read the 48 questions! Well. How funny is all that? I’ve never read such a load of silly old nonsense in my life; surely its make belief and not real policing?
No wonder the case got binned.
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:58 pm
i have difficults to find the numbers of the pages hier.
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:56 pm
Why didn’t you ask the twins, did they seriously ask her that question.
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:50 pm
I must go now
Beach calling
Have a good day all
xx
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:49 pm
Lone Pigeon Says:
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Jo - surely a pebble is a pebble is a pebble?
******
For you yes but if you lived on mccannLand,nope
Stones or pebbles or not any,have they found Madeleine yet?
I mean the lawyers had 81 files with info that could contain leads.Nothing.NOT even a false sighting! Is M3 on strike or wot?
The lawyers are turning pages and pages hoping to find Madeleine hidden in some small characters and they still say nothing…how strange! srangely silent all of a sudden….and Madeleine is still “away”
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:45 pm
Joana Morais is publishing all the questions Kate seems not to have answered.
48 in total.
I believe each of us here is capable to answer at leas 45 of them.
What about going to Portimão and answer them to the PJ?
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Jo - surely a pebble is a pebble is a pebble?
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:38 pm
I have read very interesting articles in Paulo Reis website
One excellent over the British
Have the mcc&&&& farted today?
No entries in their blogs…it looks like they”ve lost interest….the whole thing has become mortally boring…..
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:34 pm
Lone
English Pebbles dont move
They are different from portugues Stones,didnt you know?
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:30 pm
“Is it true that you considered handing over Guardianship of Madeleine to a relative”.
May be Hoggy could answer that one?
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:28 pm
i’ve got at least 68 pebbles in my back garden that haven’t moved a millimetre
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:27 pm
I found 48 stones unturned at Joana”s house
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:24 pm
Morning
Testing
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:24 pm
it’s like the bou who kept moaning to his parents that he wanted the best present and when he finally got it he realised that he didn’t actually want that one after all. I’m sure there is a proper saying but I can’t remember what it is cos i’ve had too much salt
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:18 pm
I imagine that there will be a deluge of material once the wizarding hour strikes tomorrow; the McCanns may regret only suing Express Newspapers while they had the chance.
Clarrie may have some difficulty, after all these months of bemoaning Portuguese secrecy, in explaining why he now thinks secrecy is a good idea…
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:05 pm
Morning Chenier,
Methinks the McCanns will rue the day they were so eager to court publicity and use
a PR spokesman. The Guardian was recently voted the most “honest” paper, but the
article admits to” puzzling ” anomilies!!! I read yesterday that the U.K. Press already
have copies of the book, being translated by experts.
Iv”e no doubt the U.S. will also publish and the English version sold on Amazon
around the world.
At least, after all the speculation, we will be able to sort the chaff from the wheat.
August 3rd, 2008 at 11:43 am
Nice one, Val.
I would certainly argue with the ‘ordinary’…
August 3rd, 2008 at 11:32 am
Garth
Morning Garth, how”s tricks?
Thanks for the Guardian Article , the only quibble I have is the last sentence,”and doubly so when the mystery invites vicarious intrusion into the suddenly trajic private
life of an ordinary middle class family”. Ermm, who started the publicity? asked for
public donations? had an audience with the Pope? took an active part in letting go
balloons etc?
August 3rd, 2008 at 11:27 am
willo……..I couldn”t agree more. they obviously need the money!!!!
August 3rd, 2008 at 11:24 am
as Ned Tenko writes………….the book offers a page-turning compendium of unexplained puzzles.
Puzzles the McCanns will explain when they find their voice no doubt.
It’s all so surreal. Why are they more concered with court action when there are stones begging to be turned. Surely the legal action could wait till all the stones are inverted!
August 3rd, 2008 at 11:18 am
Morning All
Amaral was being interviewed yesterday on a T.V. programme and apparently said
CM had warned him about publishing his book. If true, this is outrageous.!!!!!!
I would assume that the legal implications had been thoroughly investigated and tacit
agreement from PJ to go ahead was given. Amaral is no fool and said he trained as a
Lawyer but decided to join the Police force, but now wants to study Law again.
How come the McCann”s havn”t tried suing the Portugese and Spanish Press now
they are no longer aguidos?
August 3rd, 2008 at 11:09 am
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/aug/03/crime
August 3rd, 2008 at 10:45 am
Perhaps.
August 3rd, 2008 at 10:28 am
# Châtelaine Says:
August 3rd, 2008 at 9:41 am
CdM is going to publish the 48 unanswered questions?
allegedly, personally in MO
Tomorrow may be an interesting day
——————————————–
It should be an interesting week indeed!
Have a good Sunday, all.