Madeleine McCann: A Bedroom, A bed And A Blanket
MADDY WATCH - Anorak’s at-a-glance guide to press coverage of Madeleine McCann
DAILY MIRROR front page: “FIRST PIC OF SNATCH SCENE – INSIDE MADDY’S BEDROOM”
A picture of the holiday bedroom from where Madeleine McCann vanished. Useful. Perhaps seeing it will jog your memory…
The Mirror highlights three areas of the room:
DOOR: “LAST LOOK. Dad Gerry last saw his daughter form this door”
BED: “HER BED - “Rumpled covers and pillow on mattress”
WALLS: “UNTOUCHED – Room is as it was after police forensic team finished work”
We commend to your attention the shards of sardine roll, cigarette ash dropping and big footprints
The picture is an “EXCLUSIVE”
MADDY COPS WANTS McCANNS SILENCED” – A plan to do harm to Kate and Gerry McCann?
Almost as bad: “Portuguese police may gag Madeleine McCann’s parents by keeping them suspects for the next 15 years.” So too Robert Murat. This one has along way to run
DAILY EXPRESS front page: “MADELEINE – THE HUNT SWITCHES TO BOSNIA AFTER NEW SIGHTING”
Page 9: “Tourist spotted Madeleine – I heard her yell: ‘I want my daddy’”
The Express hears news from Medugorje, Bosnia, the site of a Catholic shrine. As reported on Anorak, the man sees a girl who looks like Madeleine. He reports it to local police. Police shrug. He tells the McCanns’ private detective firm. They check the expense account. They respond
The “father of six”, from County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland, who asked not to be named, says: “From the minute I saw them, there seemed to be something odd going on. They both had a very swarthy complexion and the toddler with them was a blonde, fair child.” Dark, you say?
“She was wearing a little pink coat and was very agitated and sobbing. The instant I saw her my heart skipped a beat because it struck me that she looked like Madeleine McCann. I felt sure there was something wrong and started to move towards them. As they saw me coming, they started walking faster away from me. I was sure the child they had was not theirs. I got right up beside them, and was about to speak to the child when the man put his hand over her mouth and shoved her into the car. He was pushing her into the back seat and was yelling in a language I didn’t understand.”
“First look at bedroom” – Unless you have already seen the Mirror that is
“New nightmare as McCanns could be suspects for 15 years” – Says Francisco Pagarete, Robert Murat’s lawyer: “The problem is that in Portugal a suspect can remain an arguido for 15 years without any need for police to reapply or extend the status”
No problem for the press
THE SUN page 11: “MADDIE;S BEDROOM.” This is the “FIRST PICTURE” of “Inside the McCann holiday flat”
For those readers unfamiliar with the contents of a “bedroom”, the Sun uses an arrow pointing towards a box-shaped presence and tells us: “Bed she was in before she went missing.” A second arrow points to a “Blanket”
Clarence Mitchell hears of the sighting in Bosnia. Says he:”We are not dismissing it. The witness was 99.9 per cent certain the child was not with her natural parents”
DAILY MAIL page 19: “First photo of Maddie flat as hunt switches to Bosnia”
“Its narrow beds have been stripped of their sheets so they can be analysed for evidence”
And in Bosnia, the “very swarthy” people are with Madeleine. Like the man in Belgian, perhaps…
DAILY STAR page 9: “BOMBSHELL BOOK POINTS FINGER AT MADDIE PARENTS”
Hernani Carvalho and Luis Maia have written Maddie 129. the Star says the book claims some of the Tapas Seven “had already given up searching for Madeleine and were in their own flats 90 minutes after the alarm was raised because ‘they already knew where she was’”
An American artist has been employed by the Star to make Madeleine’s hair from blonde to dark. (Non-experts can use a felt tip or boot polish)
DAILY TELEGRAPH front page: “MADELEINE DETECTIVES CHECK NEW SIGHTING AT BOSNIAN SHRINE”
Page 7: Says Clarence Mitchell: “But as with all these reports, the McCanns refuse to raise their hopes until it has been investigated fully”
NEW YORK TIMES: “European Tabloids Still Agog Months After Child Vanishes”
“Six months after Madeleine McCann, then 3 years old, disappeared from her family’s vacation apartment in Portugal, no development in the case seems too small to merit a banner headline — even the news that her father had returned to his job as a doctor. Similarly, no story is too speculative”
THE GUARDIAN, THE INDEPENDENT and THE TIMES: No Madeleine news
November 12th, 2007 at 6:52 am
1st?
November 12th, 2007 at 6:52 am
2nd?
November 12th, 2007 at 7:00 am
second then moose? you can’t have 1st and second!
November 12th, 2007 at 7:11 am
I am amazed the site is working - please excuse our teccie issues
November 12th, 2007 at 7:20 am
Anorak
You’re getting quicker though. I couldn’t post all Saturday night. It was weird, I had to look up random stuff on YouTube instead.
November 12th, 2007 at 7:27 am
206 yesterday Maicen
Yes, of course the cases of Meredith Kercher (Italy) and Madeleine McCann (Portugal) are very different.
Nevertheless, neither in Portugal nor in the U.K. would the police have been able to publish the statements made by the suspects, as happened with the Italian police publicising the partial admissions of Amanda Knox.
One suspects also that the Itailan police’s questioning of the killers of Meredith was more robust than the questioning of Murat and the McCanns.
The common element is that there weas a hoax in each case - the killers of Meredith trying to make out that there had been a burglary, deliberately breaking the windows to create an apparent burglary scene,
And of course in both cases, a female has died
November 12th, 2007 at 7:27 am
this is really scraping the bottom of the media bucket, it we now have to see a picture of the bed, like OOOHH she might be hiding underneath it, and another sighting, another tourist who failed to call out her name, I cant believe it.
November 12th, 2007 at 7:28 am
top 1o
November 12th, 2007 at 7:31 am
morning anorak et al,
still can’t see the antispam word - when i click too hear the audio it downloads onto itunes - its great when listening to my ipod I get the odd spelling lesson in between songs!! Can we either go back to the maths question, or have more difficult words so that at least i can learn to spell!
November 12th, 2007 at 7:31 am
I said this yesterday - Madeleine is the new Elvis. She’s going to be sighted everywhere.
Medjugorje is a ridiculous place for kidnappers to take her - unless she’s been stolen by devout Catholics and that would be some coincidence.
November 12th, 2007 at 7:33 am
Tony - do you never sleep? you were here till all hours last night..
November 12th, 2007 at 7:51 am
tonib - you might be onto something - I can\’t believe that the McC\’s involved anyone in their (alleged) plot, and I was interested to hear that Kate sat on the sofa and would not move when Maddie was first \’found\’ to be \’missing\’. Some time later (before the sniffer dogs perhaps) Gerry was allowed to move all their stuff to a new apartment, without any of it being checked.
Was Maddie left in the apartment initially? Perhaps under the sofa? or in suitcase? tennis bag? and Kate stayed their to make sure that nobody looked too closely?
November 12th, 2007 at 7:58 am
I think they put her in a bag and got rid of it when they thought no one would notice.
I used to think they were innocent - but apparently Kate told Phil that’s what the police thought, and I know that when I’m trying to cover something up (minor stuff, honestly!) I say exactly what I did incredulously on order to make the truth sound implausible.
November 12th, 2007 at 8:16 am
I watched a programme about child exploitation in India about three months ago and in the background I saw a small blond girl with a wonky eye who was holding up a piece of paper which said-
“I am Madeleine McCann. I am being held captive at Dilaps Toys, 17 Rama Street, Bangalore.
Please send help.”
I was not sure what to do - so I did nothing. Nothing that is until I saw the opportunity to get a few bob from the tabloids - so in a public minded gesture I have come forward.
Is my cheque in the post?
November 12th, 2007 at 8:16 am
LOL, I see “swarthy” people are in the soup again. What a shocker!
On Saturday, Chenier posted this strange message (allegedly) from Medugorje:
213
chenier Says:
November 10th, 2007 at 1:03 pm
(snipped)
………..By a strange coincidence the website madeleinemccann.co.uk has the following:
Idea/Suggestion Fifty Nine: Arrange a pray at Medjugorje in Yugoslvia. - Need help on this one please contact me if you can help.’
Looks as if they got the help they needed…(referring to the unnamed Irishhmen who claims he spottted M).
And I agree with the poster who said M sightings will rank up there with those of Elvis. They will eventually converge in Jerusalem where a blonde Elvis (looking young and slim again) will be seen carrying a lovely brunette Madeleine.
(After all Elvis is also swarthy skinned!)
Or maybe from Medjugorje she will make her way west? Next stop on the ‘Miracle Tour’, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy and visit the Friary of Padre Pio where one can glimpse Madeleine with the famous stigmatic padre. (Watch were you step. You don’t want to leave any bloody footprints.) Then on to Assisi, where Madeleine is living happilyy with St. Clare and St. Francis (plus she has real pets now! No need for cuddle cat!)
Now for France, Our Lady of Lourdes and then a show in Paris at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal (new Madeleine medals newly arrived! get yours now!) Of course Madeleine will be in Fatima and I predict PdL will become a holy shrine within the next year.
Off to the New World! Sightings of M in grilled cheese sandwiches from Virginia to Texas. Sold on EBay they will fetch as much as several tens of thousands dollars). Physical sightings M att Chaco Canyon and Four Corners - the Native Americans will hop aboard the McCann Caravan. Then Elvis (blonde, tanned and slim) will be seen in Guadalupe Mexico on the beach with a happy Madeleine now blonde again. It will take awhile for these sightings to be known because both are lovely and blonde - all will assume they are father and child. That is until a British tourist (he’s also a doctor) notices her unusual colomba; reports it to the Mexican authorities but like all the police in this story - none speak English and they smell of sardines and are drunk on tequila and they do nothing.
Oh what fun! (As Ade would say.)
November 12th, 2007 at 8:17 am
#11
Oh I can vouch for the fact she never sleeps - insatiable doesn’t even begin to describe it.
November 12th, 2007 at 8:19 am
Teddy Boy
I think your sighting entirely creditable. You deserve a cheque and an interview on RTE.
November 12th, 2007 at 8:19 am
Is my cheque in the post? Tteddy boy asks.
Yes it is. The same post as the DNA results. I hope you are a patient man?
November 12th, 2007 at 8:22 am
Why are the DNA results taking so long? How long does it normally take - does anyone know?
November 12th, 2007 at 8:23 am
‘Morning gang
November 12th, 2007 at 8:25 am
Karen says, Medjugorje is a ridiculous place for kidnappers to take her - unless she’s been stolen by devout Catholics and that would be some coincidence.
_________
Karen, your comments are hurtful and unhelpful (not to mention ludicrous!).
Roman Catholics, like all good devout people of faith, are cut from the same fine god fearing cloth as the McCanns and do NOT commit crimes!
November 12th, 2007 at 8:25 am
must say Kates being seated firmly on the sofa while everybody else searched, very queer indeed ? If true allegedly’ and then blood & hair found by Eddie strange.
November 12th, 2007 at 8:25 am
12 - noseycow and toni b
Where did you read that Kate sat on the sofa? It’s the first time I’ve seen it.
But it would make sense with the claims that blood was found on the floor “behind the sofa”, and also with the counter-argument that they would not have had enough time to remove a dead body from the flat without being seen.
On the other hand, one would think that it would be very a risky strategy to keep the body in the apartment. In case police would have brought sniffer dogs, surely they’d identify Madeleine’s smell and go straight into the sofa - wouldn’t they?
November 12th, 2007 at 8:29 am
I was told, by someone who was in PdL who assisted in the search that he and his wife never saw Kate involved in the searches on Friday afternoon, Saturday morning or Sunday morning. They did see Gerry and one other man who they think was O’Brien searching. After looking at photos of the other Tapa Junta members my friends say they do not recall seeing any of the women and only the one male with Gerry. Very strange.
And I also find it more than strange that the tapparati has never attended any of the special events or church services for Madeleine?
November 12th, 2007 at 8:35 am
The McCann’s are likely to face the full weight of the Law any time soon… As if they can perpetrate the biggest fraud and cover-up of all history and get away with it.
And not a moment too soon, I really can’t wait.
November 12th, 2007 at 8:36 am
I never mentioned Kate sitting on a couch, and Teddy, I am toni.b not TONY BENNETT. and btw, i dont sleep much either, just wanted to make sure you have the righ toni ,
and I agree with thea, apart from the one freind in PDL that went to church with Kate (on their own be it noted) why dont we see the tapps 9 visiting rothley to help their so called best freinds.
the grannys are also very conspicuous by their absence
November 12th, 2007 at 8:36 am
Thea or anyone,
Have you read yesterday’s El Mundo article that Paulo REIS mentions in his website?
I don’t have a subscription to the website so I can’t access it.
http://gazetadigitalmadeleinecase.blogspot.com/2007/11/lawyer-from-tapas-1-lobby-surrounding.html
El Mundo is a respected newspaper - it sounds like they are standing by their story last week claiming that some of the Tapas wanted to change their stories (as denied by Clarence).
November 12th, 2007 at 8:38 am
They’re flogging a dead horse…
November 12th, 2007 at 8:46 am
Sherlock 27
Some extracts of the “alleged interview” with the lawyer of one of the Tapas 7 include the following statements (rough translation):
- My client feels obliged to remain silent, not because of secrecy laws but due to the strange circumstances that surround this case.
- My client has only been interviewed by police about the fact that the McCanns left their children unattended during dinner. For that reason he/she has asked to be re-interviewed by police to try and clarify some of the inconsistencies in the different accounts of what happened that night.
- My client wants to tell the truth, but he/she does not want to blame or accusa anyone (that’s for the police to do).
-I understand that the british government has a duty to support british cizens facing justice issues abroad. however, the role of the british government in this case has gone beyond what would be normally expected. The intervention of the British government has been prejudicial to my client and to finding the truth.
Hope it’s useful.
November 12th, 2007 at 8:47 am
27 Sherlock,
Sorry I’ve been out of the loop for a couple of days but did see Paulo’s first story that the Tapas 7 have a “rat”, or two.
I just tried looking up the article on Gazeta Digital but could not find it. The one you posted about the lobby surrounding the McCanns being “frightening” to the would be person or persons who wish to change their original story to police.
Unfortunately I do not have a subscription to El Mundo either. Maybe one of the posters from Portugal does? I would be interested in reading the original article even if my Portuguese is not so great.