MNHQ here: AMA with award winning investigative journalist Chloe Hadjimatheou, Weds 28th Jan, 7-9pm

[RhiannonEMumsnet]

Hi there,

We’re delighted to announce an AMA with award winning investigative journalist Chloe Hadjimatheou on Wednesday 28th January, 7-9pm.

Chloe is the Observer’s narrative editor, and she’s best known for her work exploring the story behind Raynor Winn’s memoir The Salt Path - which you can hear more about in this new Observer podcast.

Please post your questions for Chloe below and join her on the thread on Wednesday evening to hear the answers.

As always, please remember our guidelines - one question per user, follow-ups only if there’s time and most questions have been answered, and please keep it civil.

Thanks,
MNHQ

Are there any anecdotes you came across that suggest that Moth is a serial fantasist, particularly in the field of sport!

Hi, Chloe and thanks. I am perplexed by Amelia Fairney saying to you: "Your investigation actually sent TSP back to the top of the bestseller chart". You have then picked up on that several times, so has the BBC. But the best information we have is that if fell, and it fell and it plummeted - Hooray! Where are the statistics for this, please. as we have found the opposite?

Thank you for letting us know @RhiannonEMumsnet

Have you managed to find Dave and Julie from up North?
Thanks Chloe!

Hello and thanks for this to Chloe! I'd like to ask about HNTDDD - how conclusive is it that this was written by Sally Walker, and what implication does this have for her winning of the first Christopher Bland prize for first book?

Are you looking forward to the eventual publication of On Winter Hill in October 2026? I am. 🙂

Are you going to delve into HNTDDD at any point and share more of what's in it? We'd love to know more.

Is there anything that makes you think that Sally and Tim may have engineered the CBS diagnosis in June 2015 and do you think that the neurologist who gave the initial tentative diagnosis of CBS may have been slightly naive or unqualified to give such a diagnosis?

Does Gangani publishing company & other evidence not link HNTDDD fairly conclusively to the Walkers & the ‘dead sheep’ plot etc? Can you ‘explore the mystery’, sharing plot details, in a podcast or similar (?) Does the plot not cast light on what might be dishonest in other novels (?)

There’s very strong feeling on HNTDD (!), as our questions show, especially as a deserving writer might have been cheated out of a prize & prize money. Not a well paid profession as you’ll understand.

Without giving away commercially sensitive information, just how did the organisers of the Dulverton Literary Festival, held late last year, manage to replace Raynor Winn with an appearance by your good-self. And how were you introduced?

Is there any possibility of Landlines being investigated. I’m very doubtful they did much of this walk on foot particularly the Cape Wrath Trail which is extremely challenging and demands a high level of fitness, stamina and navigation skills. The majority of people spend months training to do this walk would be unlikely to succeed if they didn’t.

Not sure if I’m allowed another question but following on from the above question regarding Landlines, will the dishonest narrative be addressed ie the fact that in the book she presents the walk as a spontaneous, unfolding decision to walk all the way home when in fact the long walk had already been planned - as revealed in an interview beforehand.

Hi Chloe, has there been any recent contact from the Walkers legal team regarding your investigation for The Observer? If not, when was the last contact from them? Thank you.

It’s obvious they intended to go further. Most people start the trail at Fort William and finish at the CW lighthouse.

Do you think that publishers should have a responsibility to check memoirs?

Do you think this will bring about a change?

(sorry two questions)

Hello Chloe, thanks for doing the AMA!

I’d like to ask about benefits, Raynor claiming to be surviving on Working Tax Credits in TSP despite not working would seemingly be on the face of it - possible admission of benefit fraud.

Has this issue come up anywhere in your investigation?

I feel like I’m the only person who finds this quite outrageous! The discourse about benefits being too generous or benefit fraud has been strong the past few years. Yet here is Penguin publishing a purportedly non-fiction book where the author seemingly admits benefits fraud and…nothing.

Just to add a rider to this question: publication of OWH must now be in some doubt? The reputation of the author Raynor Winn/Sally Walker is in tatters, given what has been found out and alleged about her and about her second book The Salt Path over the last six and a half months. Will her publisher Penguin still want to be associated with her and risk damaging their reputation further? Will there still be a big enough market for her writing now it is known to be fiction rather than 'unflinchingly honest' non-fiction memoir as Penguin market it as? I'm not so sure. I'll be interested to hear Chloe's take on this.

And another question:

What would you like to say to people who think it doesn't matter if she made it up and it's "mean" to bring it into the public eye?

Chloe, thank you for doing this at all, and for making it 2 hours long.

How much did you find out but decide not to use because it was below your standardnof proof, ie not independently corroborated by multiple sources?

Very good question @Peladon & thank you Chloe. So impressed with your work on this.

Vroom: I'm on tenterhooks waiting for your question about CB!!

I asked it! I got in early....

Thank you for doing this Chloe...your tenacity regarding this subject has been amazing!

Did you find out anything (even if unsubstantiated/you can't go into detail in order to protect your sources) regarding Sally and Tim's abrupt move to Wales from The Midlands and/or Sally's sudden departure from her job at Burton Magistrates Court at around the same time?

This isn’t my question for Chloe but rather for @RhiannonEMumsnet - I can’t make the live Q&A and wondered if it will be available to watch/read afterwards?