To feel disappointed after reading this in The Observer about the author and her husband from The Salt Path book and film?

[DisappointedReader]

The real Salt Path: how the couple behind a bestseller le...

I read Raynor Winn's book The Salt Path and her other two books. I was looking forward to seeing the film at some point and to reading her next book. I felt sorry to read about the challenges the couple had faced, especially with regard to losing their family home and with Moth's health. Now, having read the article in today's Observer, I feel a bit stunned and am not sure what to think.

It was also posted on here (by me) earlier this afternoon

I can’t read it as it’s behind the paywall. Are you able to share a link to it please? Or at least the gist of the article?

In the Times article, the picture of Moth shows him looking the picture of health.

That makes me feel sad too. He did seem very enthusiastic about the film when promoting it. Off-topic, but I always like reading/watching interviews with JI.

With regard to names, I wondered if Moth/Tim's middle name was Ray or Raymond - leading to Raynor - as he has signed TR Walker on one document from The Observer article. It is however apparently Ronald.

I also wondered if Tim Walker is the same person as Tim Scott listed on the Gangani website. Companies House lists Tim Walker as director of Gangani.

I then wondered whether Raynor Winn/Sally Walker is the author of the lottery ticket/Gangani book How Not to Dal Dy Dir? The photo of the author could possibly be her. Izzy Wyn-Thomas >> Winn? I understand that Wyn is a Welsh name meaning fair, blessed. She is fair and is now certainly blessed with a lot of book and film royalties!

I wonder what Raynor/Sally's maiden name is?

That's a lot of wondering.

The link has a share token, so you should be able to read it.

Very good point. I’ve started doing a bit of sleuthing on here - https://www.freebmd.org.uk/cgi/search.pl - but not come up with much so far.

Wow the times got this out quickly

I know. I think everyone saw the owner as very challenging and difficult and the finance director as affable, frustrated and overworked. This included the auditors. There was a complete lack of professional curiosity all round - I count myself in this.

The owner sometimes refused to toe the line on legal, HR, finance issues (eg. tax). He was very old school stuck in his ways. The finance director was seen as the poor man trying to make the business compliant. This allowed him to pull the wool over everyone’s eyes.

Another envious lady journalist

What does it mean? 😂

😂😂

I also find the assumption that being poor makes you somehow morally superior quite annoying. Quite a lefty hippy tiresome trope.

Isn’t it interesting how they’ve done it! they’re not saying the observer was right, but flagging all the stuff that doesn’t add up… clearly feel the need to report it but don’t have time to get the lawyers on to it!

Or rather "being poor but not the kind of person who would be able to live in a council house"

People like this (fraudsters who think living off other people is their right) are thick skinned. They’ll be feeling outraged that they’ve been called out and will be fine tuning the victim narrative as we speak

they'll be gutted it’s not the Mail as the Observer is far harder to rail against

a beginners guide to asset-stripping
her book grew from the idea that nothing is as it seems

The above from the Gangani bio of the Izzy Wyn-Thomas' book. Prophetic?

Do you think they actually walked the coast path in its entirety - or did they get a few lifts, catch the bus eat fudge?

`it has enticed me to walk parts of the path, perhaps two r three days here and there

They will have known the story was going to break and had this in the pipeline ready

They mention getting the bus once, and I always thought this was a bit of a "cover story" in case they were called out for having been spotted on buses. So yes,.I think if they were able to lie about how they became homeless they will think nothing or lying about how much or the path they walked.

Haha true! Maybe the Mail has some sort of gentleman’s agreement with the Observer to not run the story at all, to avoid getting involved? I know that sounds far-fetched 😂 but interesting that the Mail have still not published the story.

FWIW she mentions and features her daughter on her Instagram account sometimes.

It is mentioned in the article that they used it for that (at least some of it).

My Welsh is very, very (very) limited but dal yr dil apparently means "hold your ground". Yes, I used a translator!

Few letters different and it would be "catch the dragon" which seems apposite for their current situation.

ETA I have massive doubts that Ray/Sally is a Welsh speaker either, which makes it even more odd. Who was she hoping to appeal to? I know enough to know that the Welsh guard their beautiful (and difficult😂) language, as they should, hence thinking they would be pissed off with this weird hybrid.

I loved the film, I love the story. She could have just said based on a true story but parts embellished and it would still have been successful