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 4:26 pm
You may have suspects, pass your information on to the PJ and the AG, they don’t have any,perhaps you have “evidence” that they do not ?
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:24 pm
Val,
I am south of Minneapolis, west of Chicago, NE of Kansas City, and east of Omaha.
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:23 pm
Surely they would have compared notes, given time.
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:22 pm
VQ
I think it was the next day he got interviewed and then they were made arguidos.
They must’ve had time to compare notes (not that that I’m saying that’s what they did - obviously).
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:22 pm
Good luck, Rasputin.
You have the short end of the stick.
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:19 pm
“There is simply too much damaging infomation against the McCanns and their pact-members. My belief and my hope is that they will face public disgrace.”
Thats funny, must check up on who are arguido’s and what the AG said.
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:19 pm
How do you have the presence of a corpse in your appartment with a missing child and no evidence of an abduction…….
AND NOT GET CHARGED?
MODS AND ADMIN
We have seen no evidence of a corpse in any apartment - far less any evidence to suggest that such a corpse might have any relevance to this matter.
The specialist dogs did detect that there had been a the presence of a corpse in that apartment, but for all we know it could have been Granny Oates’ Mother in Law who had died there the previous week.
Both the apartment and the rental car had been hired by numerous people, so I think it would be better to wait for the official reports tomorrow before we make the sort of assumptions that you are alluding to.
Carmen
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:16 pm
VW I live in Wales where do you live?
Carmen, have you noticed that Kate is much more talkative in these interviews now
and Gerry takes a back seat? As for the questioning, apparently Amaral thought
Gerry should be first because he was the one most likely to crack, but he was overruled.
Didn”t Amaral contend that Madeleine had been accidentally killed, and from entries in Kate”s Diary she was the one suspected.
Karen, Hi……what are you doing these days?
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:14 pm
Yes, K, maybe so.
I believe that Gerry was questioned after Kate, but I cannot recall the time elapsesd.
Was it a different day?
Did they have time to share notes?
I am now recalling K’s text messages . . . .
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:03 pm
Maybe Gerry was more confident about the timeline.
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:57 pm
I think we will hear more about G’s responses in days to come.
Should be riveting!
Do you suppose G threw K “under the bus?”
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:49 pm
no idea . . .
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:48 pm
Seems like I am mostly talking to Val and myself, but here is a question:
Apparently GM answered all questions.
What does this mean?
I have not idea, just asking to generate some traffic.
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:38 pm
Val, where do you live, if you don’t mind me asking?
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Val, what they reveal to me is that we don’t know the answers to those questions because she refused to answer them. We need to know the answers and why a mother of an “abducted” daughter would not answer them.
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:29 pm
VW
While I don”t think the Questions to Kate reveal much, the witness statements from
the Tapas staff will be the most damaging I suspect. Why the McCanns weren”t
interviewed simultaneously in seperate rooms is beyond me, so much scope for
Gerry to be prepared IMO. If true that OC had to phone the McCanns one night when
they were at Chaplins and that Mrs Fenn said Madeleine cried for over an hour will
damage their reputations.
We shall see.
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Actually I would prefer that they go to jail, but we may have to settle for public disgrace.
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:17 pm
really not reallyt
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:07 pm
Hi Val,
I think Garth is fundamentally an intelligent person, and he is absorbing information and readjusting his views. Just my view, of course.
Of course all those in the press are busy translating, and reading everything pursued by “‘cybernauts and bloggers who have been defending the cause of truth and justice.’”
So that is why I thought the Temko person took a reallyt cheap shot.
I don’t think we will hear much about suing, except from Murat and I hope he wins a bundle. I also hope that Amaral achieves a comfortable standard of living and that he is not under continued threat from the ilk of the CMs of the world.
There is simply too much damaging infomation against the McCanns and their pact-members. My belief and my hope is that they will face public disgrace.
August 3rd, 2008 at 2:47 pm
vw
I did post to you at 1.48pm…….this Bl***y new format, no numbers.!!!!!
Rumour has it that the U.K. Press already have copies and busily getting them expertly
translated. If the U.K. Press DO print, which I am sure they will, how can they be sued?
Amaral must be confident he can”t be sued and if the Press publish his Report verbatim
they are not being libellous. The PJ files are to be made available to the Public soon
anyway. apparently because the McCann Lawyers demanded access.
Why do you think Garth is having a more moderate pro-mcann approach? Iv”e not
posted for a month, so don”t know what”s been happening. I can imagine Garth,
Gandolf et al having a field day when it was announced the case was shelved.
August 3rd, 2008 at 2:40 pm
I am reminded of the joke about the prisoners who had told the same jokes so many times that all they had to do was say “joke #34″ to get the laugh.
I am wondering if C and C could prepare a list of questions not answered by KM just by their numerical identification. If 48 is too big of a number, perhaps she could borrow from David Letterman (do you get his show?) and prepare a list of the top 10 unanswered questions, starting with 10 and counting down to 1, the funniest unanswered question of them all.
August 3rd, 2008 at 2:27 pm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/aug/03/crime
“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. It’s also a fairly safe bet that it won’t be.”
This is a bet I would be happy to take!!!!!!
“The book does nothing to change one’s view that there is no plausible case against the McCanns”
Then he doesn’t have a mind to be changed, much like C and C, Maria, Garth, Rasptin/Gandolf. Well, actually I have some hope for Garth.
“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.’”
The true irony is really lost on the Temko person.
August 3rd, 2008 at 2:15 pm
penster
Oh, I get it…….Fagan as in Oliver Twist!!!!!!!! Very Good, if a trifle obscure to us
one dimension thinkers.
I pasted a very funny post yesterday, it was about the possible suing by the McCanns
of any detrimental blogs and Posts. I think it is on page 1, you ought to read it.
August 3rd, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Yes Val. fingerless Fagan gloves and sausage meat do turn me on.
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:52 pm
Thats why KM couldn’t answer, she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:48 pm
VW
There is very little in the CdM report which is revealing. What I did find interesting
was that Amaral thought Gerry would be the first to crack and wanted him to be
questioned before Kate. However, he was over-ruled.
Do you know anything about the alleged theory that the McCanns wanted a relative
to adopt Madeleine? I don”t believe it and think it just refers to Madeleine being
made a Ward of Court before the McCanns were made aguidos.
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:36 pm
penster
Well I hadn”t envisaged such an outlandish protest, but whatever turns you on!!!!!!
What are fagan gloves?
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:33 pm
That is the joy of being a vegetarian… food abroad anywhere offers fewer choices and there are less things to miss.
It’s only vegetarians who can holiday in the USA, on Cruise Ships and at all’inclusive resorts and not put on weight. Sometimes I even lose weight because I’m not quite as lazy. Yay.
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:27 pm
C and C,
I think you have an extremely odd sense of humor to have found those questions funny.
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:24 pm
what, no sawdust in France?
That’s the secret ingredient in sausages
Well I’m not going back there.
____________________
m&a
got a problem with sawdust penster?
-meercat