Madeleine McCann: With Columnist Fergus Shanahan And The Maddie Squad
MADDIE WATCH - Anorak’s at-a-glance guide to press coverage of Madeleine McCann, Kate McCann and Gerry McCann
THE COLUMNISTS
FERGUS SHANAHAN: “SWOOP FOR MADDIE”
“I tried to imagine the misery Kate and Gerry McCann must be going through with these Maddie sightings. It’s too awful.”
See the Sun’s front-page Maddie update in which she is served an ice-cream in Brussels. Shanahan is the paper’s deputy editor. It’s too awful…
“They must cling to any hope. But some of the latest rash of ‘sightings’ are based on thin detail.”
The ice-cream was chocolate.
“Sadly, the Maddie tragedy is attracting its fair-share of attention seekers”
The Sun’s front page says the ice-cream was cold and sweet – just how Maddie likes them!
“It seems unlikely that Europe’s most instantly recognisable child would be walked through city streets by her abductors.”
More likely she’d stop and be bought an ice cream…
“But if convincing reports of sightings continue, Scotland Yard should set up a Maddie squad capable of moving instantly anywhere in Europe.”
On the Sun’s word…
Posted: 12th, August 2008 | In: Madeleine McCann, Tabloids Comments (348) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
Comments
August 12th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
BF…. absolutely she would get in trouble. Confidentiality is such a big thing in Social Services. BUT, as i said she was originally ‘a care worker’ so she wouldn’t have had that knowledge anyway.
Are any excerpts of her ’statement’ around verbatim? All the other stuff is out there….. and Mrs Fenn, what of her alleged statement? Nowt.
Sorting the wheat from the chaff is a problem here.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:22 pm
Julie , can we share him please ?
August 12th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
doris Says:
August 12th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
yes I am ready and waiting for him ! hope Julie doesnt mind !
_________________
OH but she DOES!!
August 12th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
I think I remember someone exactly the same as Maria , her name was Mandz
August 12th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
brandon flours Says:
August 12th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
The mc canns moved to rothley a few months before may 3rd.
They were hardly well known
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They were very well known by those close friends!
How well do you know them, BF??
August 12th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Maria Says:
August 12th, 2008 at 2:11 pm
LP
Well, if I don’t get it, neither do the police!
No Maria I quite agree with you there - they probably don’t. They probably dont’ get why the dogs smelt death in the flat and hire car. They probably don’t get why there was blood stains found in the flat. They probably don’t get why there was political interference from the UK. They probably don’t get why the Mccanns would refuse to answer questions that would have helped the investigation. They probably don’t get why the British press were verbally abusive towards them. They probably don’t get why statements made simply dont’ ring true. They probably don’t get why the Mccanns hired extradition lawyers immediately. They probably dont’ get why The Mccanns would not go to a reconstruction but most importantly they probably don’t get and never will get why they lived three kids alone night after night to fend for themselves. It’s not the Polices fault is it? The police never asked them to leave them alone did they? The police were there to help find out what happened but the Mccanns don’t want them to know what’s happened do they? Why is this Maria? Do you get why the Mccanns don’t want to help them? Do you get why they would leave the kids alone? Do you get why there is blood and death scent in the flat? It’s a mystery isn’t it Maria. One I just dont’ get at all……
August 12th, 2008 at 2:19 pm
brandon flours Says:
August 12th, 2008 at 2:16 pm
Doris
Are you waiting for garth ?
Watch out Julies on the warpath
I have my evil eye on Doris ……. 
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August 12th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
yes I am ready and waiting for him ! hope Julie doesnt mind !
August 12th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
Errr …. surely what’s good for one is good for another?
In the space of less than the last hour, we’ve had the following :
______________________
…. I’ll try and find the links for this right now
….. I’m hopeless about links. I tend to just read stuff and let it go bit I’ll try and fine the links now.
…. I don’t have time to look for all links but I do remember reading and hearing about their neighbours’ comments.
….This is an article I did keep. Can’t remember which paper!
…..I’ll try and find it.
_____________________
All of this from the SAME poster! Feeding us a whole lot of info that she’s “seen” ….. yet NOT ONE LINK!!
August 12th, 2008 at 2:17 pm
Marie N
Yes, but I guess any real work the lawyers and investigators are doing is well away from the public glare. They wouldn’t be stupid enough to give publicity to anything they seriously thought worth following up at this stage.
It’s obvious why the press are doing what they are doing…MONEY!
I think the Mcs are probably just desperate for any crumb of hope at all. I also think they probably recognise that Madeleine is dead but they still want to know the truth of what happened. They committed themselves to finding out what happened. What else can they do? Should they just give up?
As for the unsavoury tabloid press; they just want to sensationalise and sell papers, but the Mcs must know that as much as anyone. They may be desperate but i doubt if they’re daft.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:17 pm
marie nicholas , the mc canns and the lawyers are a law unto themselves !
August 12th, 2008 at 2:16 pm
Doris
Are you waiting for garth ?
Watch out Julies on the warpath
August 12th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
yes kates dad told us
August 12th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
lock the freaks up
August 12th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
they wanted more children ?
August 12th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
The yorkshire ripper was nice too
August 12th, 2008 at 2:13 pm
they wanted their kids so much they abandoned them night after night ?
August 12th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
theres also the youtube vid of lady disgusted from rothley , she was good
August 12th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
The mc canns moved to rothley a few months before may 3rd.
They were hardly well known
August 12th, 2008 at 2:11 pm
LP
Well, if I don’t get it, neither do the police!
August 12th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Elvera
I was just thinking the same thing
August 12th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Cool
Are you saying that if a social worker was on holiday and a child went missing and the social worker told police she recognised one of the group who also happened to be one of the last people to see her, was being investigated by SS in the Uk over these allegations, she would get in trouble ?
August 12th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Maria,
“I just don’t understand why people can’t accept what the police are saying….no evidence! ”
————
I accept that there is no evidence. I also accept that as regards the sightings, the PJ said the leads were explored by the Dutch, Belgian, Venezuelian police forces, and Interpol, and they were dead ends. Why won’t the media, or the MC’s lawyers just won’t accept that?
I will not say I can’t understand why the press don’t, as it is good for their sales. The reasons of the MCs and their lawyers are known to themselves.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
So, if one neighbour says that the kids were never alone, WHY would they change their behaviour during holidays? I don’t change mine when I’m on vacation.
Were they on the brink of a separation and as such, were they so self-absorbed in their own misery and playing games with each-other, which caused the neglect? How many nights did Kate sleep in the other room? Was she not only upset but also trying to protect the kids from something/someone? What were they arguing about?
August 12th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Maria Says:
August 12th, 2008 at 1:44 pm
doris
I’ll try and find the links for this right now. Some of their neighbours spoke up in the first couple of days to say what good parents they were. Two of Kate’s best friends, who had known her from childhood also made a point of saying the same thing. Jon Corner’s wife has known Kate since they started primary school together.
I’m hopeless about links. I tend to just read stuff and let it go bit I’ll try and fine the links now. I’m not being dishonest. I remember that well. (Of course, all newspaper reports are suspect anyway.)
Why do you think their neighbours in Rothley have been unfailingly supportive from the start? The ones who spoke about them live in the same road but the whole Rothley community has given strong support from day one. Look how many attended the 12 months anniversary service.
Have you EVER heard any friend, relative or neighbour utter a single word of suspicion about them? Isn’t that very strange? Not one person has ever said,
“Well…..I always thought there was something funny…….” Not ONE. (At least, not one that I’ve ever seen. I could have missed something I suppose.)
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I remember when the Dr Shipman story was breaking and the absolute incredulity of many of his patients and people who knew him, liked and respected him…..look at how much time that gained him to carry on his crimes.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
Lone
Remember the video of the ‘not so supportive’ Rothley residents?
Wonder where that went?
August 12th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
LP
I was simply responding to Doris’s suggestion that no friends or neighbours have ever spoken out in support of the Mcs.
No more than that.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
readin that makes me wanna puke - absolute bollocks the lot of it
August 12th, 2008 at 2:06 pm
maria - you just don’t get it
August 12th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
‘Our friend Kate McCann, the perfect mum,’ two of her closest friends speak out
By LAURA COLLINS
Last updated at 18:09 16 September 2007
Calm, laid-back, loving and happy. Away from the headlines and the horrors, this is how Kate McCann’s friends knew her to be with her children.
Yesterday, at the end of a week in which Kate has been described as ’struggling’ to cope with three ‘hysterical’ children and short-tempered with Madeleine, two of her oldest friends, Linda McQueen and Nicky Gill, have spoken out in her defence - and told of her heartbreak and devastation.
Nicky said: “The things that have been said are unfair and hurtful. It’s frustrating for Kate and Gerry that anything is taking the focus away from Madeleine and away from the search for her.
“At the bottom of all this, Kate is a mother who has lost her daughter and she needs all the help she can get. Kate is a warm, loving, loyal friend.
“We’re her friends. We’ll do whatever it takes. We’ll continue to support and help right to the end.”
The 39-year-old personal trainer, who lives in the Liverpool suburb of Childwall, has known Kate since they met at the age of six on their first day of school.
“If anybody was meant to have three children under the age of three, it was Kate,” she said. “She’s so cool, calm and laidback. I never saw her run ragged once. She was just so happy.”
Nicky also defended Gerry, who had been described as ‘absent’ when it came to child care. She said: “Gerry is a fabulous dad. He’s a working father but very hands-on. He’s like a fourth kid, rolling around with them in a very rough-and-tumble way, and with a fabulous sense of humour.
“He and Kate balance each other really well. They have a very special relationship.”
Linda McQueen, a 45-year-old teacher from Formby, Merseyside, has also known Kate since they were children. She said: “The family had a great routine - their mealtimes, bedtimes and bathtimes in particular were great fun.
“We holidayed with them as part of a big group earlier in the year. It was just lovely.”
Having a large family was, Linda explained, something of which Kate always dreamed. “They were up and down about whether they could have children and then they went through IVF so Madeleine, all of the children, was a dream come true.”
Nicky added: “It seems so cruel that this happened to them just when they had all they wanted.”
Both women have been in close contact with Kate and Gerry since Madeleine disappeared from their villa in Praia da Luz on May 3. Yesterday Linda recalled how she had spoken to Kate at about 2am on the night Madeleine vanished.
“She just said, ‘Somebody’s taken Madeleine, somebody’s taken Madeleine.’ She sounded shocked and frantic and was just trying to get everything up and running to find her. It was just awful. This cold, icy feeling came over you.”
Nicky spoke to Kate the next day, by which time “she was exhausted, physically and emotionally”.
The McCanns have been criticised by some for a ‘too slick’ publicity campaign to try to find their daughter.
But Linda said: “Kate and Gerry were so traumatised that they went into a cocoon in the first couple of days. But all the advice they were being given was, ‘Get Madeleine’s face out there.’ So that’s what they did. They will do whatever it takes to find her.”
Nicky said: “I think Kate has done extremely well. It’s horrendous. She is the kindest, most caring person. But the frustration is that every day spent talking about Kate and Gerry is another not finding Madeleine.”
Linda added: “They’re an amazing couple. They have their vulnerable times and their dark moments.
“But Kate can’t let Madeleine down and we’ll get through it.
“I think it’s only a small minority who are critical of Kate. The rest are sticking with us and keeping Madeleine in their prayers.
“We need to refocus on Madeleine. That’s the most important thing to Kate - to get the focus back on Madeleine.”
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This is an article I did keep. Can’t remember which paper! Laura Collins? I only have about a dozen articles altogether but this one really struck me because the two women were also on the TV and seemed so sincere. I’ll have to google in the names to find the actual link to the article. I seem to remember there were a lot of photos of them with these friends.
The reference to Jon Corner’s wife was made during the Panorama propgramme I think. I can’t remember what her name is, or if he actually gave it. He just said she’d been at school with Kate all her life. I’m not sure if it was one of the women in the article above or another friend. I’ll try and find it. I think I kept the Panorama programme somewhere; not sure.