Madeleine McCann: Saville Kent, Fictional Detectives And D-Day II
MADDIE WATCH - Anorak’s at-a-glance guide to press coverage of Madeleine McCann
Madeleine McCann returns to the nation’s front pages.
No mention is made of Robert Murat’s libel settlement with 11 British organs (more on that later), just the Mirror’s news: “MADDY – Law chief: It’s D-Day on Monday.”
D-Day – much like the Sun’s Maddy D-Day on 29th, November 2007, only more decisive.
DAILY STAR: “D-DAY COMING FOR THE MCCANNS”
THE GUARDIAN: “D-day close in McCann investigation”
Says Clarence Mitchell, spokesman for Madeleine’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann:
“We have not been told this and we will not prejudge what he has to say. If the case is to be shelved, as has been suggested, clearly Kate and Gerry’s arguido status must be lifted.”
THE SUN: “’Solution’ in Maddie case”
PORTUGAL’S Attorney-General said yesterday he will announce a “solution” to the Madeleine McCann investigation on Monday.
A solution?
Fernando Pinto Monteiro’s comments raised the prospect that Maddie’s parents Kate and Gerry may discover if they will be formally cleared over her disappearance.
May.
They also fuelled speculation the case could be drawing to a close.
Speculation.
DAILY MAIL: “The first whodunnit: How the murder of a three-year-old boy gave us the fictional detectives we know today.”
It’s 1860.
It wasn’t until just after 5am that Saturday that Elizabeth Gough - the family’s 22-year-old nursemaid, who looked after the three smallest children of factory inspector Samuel Kent - woke up, and noticed that one of her charges, three-year-old Saville Kent wasn’t in his cot on the other side of her room…
Whathappened?
But the child had not found his way to his mother’s bed - far from it. He had disappeared. By 8am, a full scale search of the grounds had begun, with a reward of £10 (worth about £650 today) being offered by Samuel Kent to anyone who found his youngest son.
Less than an hour after the search had begun two local men, William Nutt, a shoemaker, and Thomas Benger, a farmer, opened the door of a servants’ privy set among dense shrubbery to the left of the house’s great gravel drive. The two men peered inside, and saw a pool of blood on the floor.
Whodunnit?
Lifting the lid of the privy, and peering into the darkness, Benger saw what looked like a blanket. When he reached down to pick it up, he found it was soaked in blood.
About two feet beneath the privy’s seat - on the wooden ’splashboard’ that partly blocked the descent into the pit beneath - lay the body of Saville Kent.
As Benger lifted the boy’s body out of the privy, his head tipped back to expose the clean cut across his neck. ‘His little head fell off, almost,’ Nutt said later…
Whytellusknow?
Just as the disappearance of little Madeleine McCann today produced a massive reaction among the public, so the gruesome murder of Saville Kent provoked national hysteria in Victorian England - not least because of intense public speculation and rumour about life behind the closed doors of that most respectable of houses in the gentle Wiltshire countryside.
And:
So began one of the most dramatic murder cases in British history, a crime that inspired the murder mysteries of the Victorian authors Wilkie Collins, Charles Dickens and Arthur Conan Doyle - and which has just been brought memorably back to life in the book, The Suspicions Of Mr Whicher, by Kate Summerscale - which was awarded the £30,000 BBC Four Samuel Johnson Prize on Tuesday. It is also set to be turned into a major television drama for ITV.
How the British love a good child crime show…
July 17th, 2008 at 9:01 am
So, today is Rober Murat’s day. About time too. This man’s life was destroyed by media, and I hope he holds his head proud today – he didn’t deserve to be treated the way he was! And I hope a certain Ms Campbell is hanging her head very low today.
To me it matters not that Mr Murat is still an arguido, I still firmly believe in his innocence.
And the media couldn’t even be bothered to mention todays proceedings ….. SHAME on them!
July 17th, 2008 at 9:02 am
Morning Julie!
July 17th, 2008 at 9:06 am
“PORTUGAL’S Attorney-General said yesterday he will announce a “solution” to the Madeleine McCann investigation on Monday.”
__________________
Does this solution mean archiving all the hundreds of thousands of pieces of paper collected for sometime in the future’s referencing?
July 17th, 2008 at 9:07 am
Hi Carmen!
July 17th, 2008 at 9:10 am
Says Clarence Mitchell, spokesman for Madeleine’s parents, Kate and Gerry McCann:
“We have not been told this and we will not prejudge what he has to say. If the case is to be shelved, as has been suggested, clearly Kate and Gerry’s arguido status must be lifted.”
____________________
Errr ….. WHY?
July 17th, 2008 at 9:12 am
Julie, since when did Clarrie’s comments have anything to do with planet earth?
July 17th, 2008 at 9:13 am
Julie
Clarrie seems to have forgotten that there are three arguidos……
July 17th, 2008 at 9:15 am
Were you up early to iron your shirt, Chenier?
July 17th, 2008 at 9:17 am
From the previous thread:
81
Ferdinand Says:
July 17th, 2008 at 8:58 am
74 chenier Says:
” ‘What angers him most is that British papers have called those stories just as what they were - either fabricated or illegally leaked by police authorities - or both.’
————————————
Ferdinand, in life, just as at the poker table, there comes a time where you required to put up, or shut up.
So please provide the evidence to substantiate the wild accusations in that sentence. ”
———————————-
The evidence can be found in the Portuguese secrecy laws. Even if the stories were not fabricated, they shouldn’t have been leaked.
—————–
Provide evidence that the PJ leaked stories, please, Ferdinand. And specify the stories you say were fabricated, and provide the evidence that enables you to conclude that they were fabricated.
Or shut up; always a good option when you are wholly incapable of providing evidence to substantiate wild accusations.
Pity our press did not heed that very sound advice at the time…
July 17th, 2008 at 9:17 am
3
Julie
No
July 17th, 2008 at 9:18 am
Hmm Carmen, apparently the majority of the media have chosen to forget about a certain Mr Murat as well - can’t seem to figure out why they appear to have forgotten his name all of a sudden. There’ll more than likely be plenty of seating space in the courtroom this morning ……..
July 17th, 2008 at 9:18 am
I haven’t been able to read the Daily Mail since they started using the sub-headings as a lead up to the Headline, as in ‘Samantha used to lead an ordinary life until her husband left her for another man, her children became heroin addicts, and her mother died, is that why she became… THE NYMPHO OF NUNEATON’
How come the editor hasn’t died of shame???
July 17th, 2008 at 9:21 am
To shelve a process: does it mean that they also lift an arguido?
July 17th, 2008 at 9:21 am
12
Karen Says:
How come the editor hasn’t died of shame???
________________
Apparently they are a certain breed … shame didn’t come with the requirements obviously …..
July 17th, 2008 at 9:21 am
Morning all.
Still nothing happening then?
Julie, I agree Robert M deserves compensating for the mad reporting of nonsense about him, I am not however conviced of his innocence.
I also think the mcCanns deserved compensating for the mad reporting of nonsense about them, I am however not convinced of their guilt.
Twixt and between! But the press should not be allowed to say whatever they fancy with their fingers crossed behind their backs in the hope that people won’t sue.
Even the guilty have some entitlement to the truth.
July 17th, 2008 at 9:22 am
12
Karen Says:
July 17th, 2008 at 9:18 am e
I haven’t been able to read the Daily Mail since they started using the sub-headings as a lead up to the Headline, as in ‘Samantha used to lead an ordinary life until her husband left her for another man, her children became heroin addicts, and her mother died, is that why she became… THE NYMPHO OF NUNEATON’
How come the editor hasn’t died of shame???
****************************
I feel the same way about the tv news (with the honourable exception of Channel 4 news)…….it’s all that ‘and Ben from Salford says’ why can’t we have more teddy bears in the news’….’Good comment, Ben, yes, we like teddy bears too!’………..
July 17th, 2008 at 9:23 am
Coolandcalm
How come it’s ok for you to suspect Murat and not ok for us to suspect the McCanns - it’s not as if either screams child-killer (it’s just circumstantial speculations).
July 17th, 2008 at 9:26 am
8
Carmen Says:
July 17th, 2008 at 9:15 am
Were you up early to iron your shirt, Chenier?
—————————-
Entirely unintentionally, I fear.
But since I was up I had to find the wretched iron…
July 17th, 2008 at 9:26 am
Someday we will find out the truth.
There are indications towards the parents.
But no proof.
July 17th, 2008 at 9:27 am
Let us hope you haven’t scorched the shirt whilst reading the latest comments then!
July 17th, 2008 at 9:31 am
9 chenier Says:
” Provide evidence that the PJ leaked stories, please, Ferdinand. And specify the stories you say were fabricated, and provide the evidence that enables you to conclude that they were fabricated. ”
Every story about alleged evidence which claims to quote anonymous police sources is either fabricated, or if it’s genuine, it has been unlawfully leaked. What’s so hard to understand about that?
Which stories were leaked, and which fabricated? I hope this will be revealed during the next weeks.
July 17th, 2008 at 9:31 am
Karen…. I’ve never said its not okay to suspect the McCanns!
I do however have the right to my opinion on it also. My opinion is that the McCanns did not harm their daughter, ie they did not physically do anything to her either by accident or deliberation. They facilitated her abduction (IMO) but that doesn’t mean the perpetrator should get away with it.
Murat? Yes I agree, I do have some reservations about him (as many of you about the McCanns) and I did listen to local gossip when I was last in PDL but it is hard to ignore. HOWEVER, I have never repeated it on here because it is pure gossip IMO.
Same as much of the stuff about the mcCanns.
You pays your money and you takes your choice!
July 17th, 2008 at 9:31 am
Carmen,
I gave up on finding the iron and hauled out one of those tops that can be scrunched into a small ball, stuffed in a case, and emerge uncreased on the other side of the world.
Science is wonderful…
July 17th, 2008 at 9:34 am
Carmen
Agreed.
But still - a lead up to a headline - that is really, really naff.
In the olden days they used to have headlines where a member of a minority group would condemn the group eg ‘Why I, as a Lesbian, think Lesbians have gone too far and must be stopped’ - which had a sort of evil genius to it - & all us lefties would read it to be shocked and appalled - but now - couldn’t get outraged if I tried (too naff
).
July 17th, 2008 at 9:35 am
21
Ferdinand Says:
July 17th, 2008 at 9:31 am
9 chenier Says:
” Provide evidence that the PJ leaked stories, please, Ferdinand. And specify the stories you say were fabricated, and provide the evidence that enables you to conclude that they were fabricated. ”
————————————————–
Every story about alleged evidence which claims to quote anonymous police sources is either fabricated, or if it’s genuine, it has been unlawfully leaked. What’s so hard to understand about that?
Which stories were leaked, and which fabricated? I hope this will be revealed during the next weeks.
————-
That isn’t hard to understand.
What is hard to understand is why an intelligent person would claim that the police leaked stories, without any evidence to support it, and then announce that they hoped to get evidence to support it in the next weeks.
That is an unsupported allegation, and only too typical of the conduct which has led to the libel writs.
Unsupported allegation is lawyer-speak for a lie…
July 17th, 2008 at 9:36 am
Greetings Anorakians. As I said I would be back when something new happened here I am. But unfortunately I’m not too excited about today’s news in Portugal.
Pinto Monteiro’s revelation that a press statement will be issued on Monday should be taken very cautiously. Let’s not get carried away with Mr Monteiro’s use of words. As he said before, the case is being examined by a prosecutor. At this point it is likely that the prosecutor has reached its verdict on the investigation files and has communicated this to Pinto Monteiro.
What he will announce on Monday is most likely that the case will be archived - nothing less and nothing more.
If charges were to be pursued against anyone I doubt it that he would be announcing an announcement… If on the other hand the prosecutor was to announce that further diligences by the police were needed… he would not be announcing a conclusion of the inquiry as suggested in his words. Finally, there’s no real reason for the Attorney General to issue a statement on an ongoing case. Other than the fact that the case will be archived and that some form of explanation will be needed to justify 14 months of investigations that have clearly reaped little information concerning the whereabouts of Madeleine.
The big question mark is if the press statement on Monday will contain the despacho (opinion) of the prosecutor or not. It is especially important for the public to understand if after 14 months of investigation, the PJ was able to determine which crime had been committed and failed to determine who committed it, or if on the other hand the PJ is still unsure of what crime ocurred in PDL.
Presumably the files will then be made available to the solicitors of the arguidos and we can expect them to start planning their PR strategy in the UK to deal with some of the information that will arise from the investigation files and that may be damaging for those involved.
As I said before it is better for this case to be archived at this stage. Justice is a lenghty business… and often a discretion is capital to success.
Sorry I’m not more optimistic, but this is the reality as I see it… i can of course be wrong. Will get back next week after the awaited statement.
July 17th, 2008 at 9:38 am
Journalism is not literature.
Each evening newspapers are used to line cats’ litter trays.
Each night the cats deal appropriately with what has been written.
July 17th, 2008 at 9:38 am
Thank you kindly Salomon … always a pleasure to read your posts!
July 17th, 2008 at 9:40 am
My favourite (to hate) headline was ‘First man to Give Birth’.
No…. a woman who wants to be a bloke who has had some bits removed but not others, who cropped her hair and put on a suit, gives birth and sells her story for lots of dosh. Love it.
July 17th, 2008 at 9:40 am
23
chenier Says:
July 17th, 2008 at 9:31 am e
Carmen,
I gave up on finding the iron and hauled out one of those tops that can be scrunched into a small ball, stuffed in a case, and emerge uncreased on the other side of the world.
Science is wonderful…
*********************
I remember them, we used to call them ‘moderator shirts’, you can abuse them to your hearts content, and they still emerge unruffled.