Thread 2. To feel disappointed after reading this in The Observer about the author and her husband from The Salt Path book and film?

[AWanderingFool]

Thread Two for The Salt Path and Raynor Winn/Sally Walker/Sally Winn discussions.

Thread One is here: www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5368194-to-feel-disappointed-after-reading-this-in-the-observer-about-the-author-and-her-husband-from-the-salt-path-book-and-film?

I see what you mean. But to clarify, there was no friend. It was a distant relative of Tim Walker's who lent them money.

The Walkers did claim the debt was from his business, which contradicts what the relative said, he said it was from his private account so the judge must have gone with that rather than the Walker's "evidence". (And knowledgeable people on these threads have said that no judge would not allow them to present the evidence, even if it was late in the day.)

It must be fairly easy to prove £100,000 going out of your personal bank account.

This bit's interesting:
The Observer says "During the case James filed a witness statement in which he told the court that “the purpose of the loan is clear: it was required to settle a criminal allegation made against Mrs Walker”.

I wonder if they had tried to argue that the loan was a business loan to them, otherwise why clarify what the loan was for. If it was a loan to their business (and if that business was a ltd company) they could have argued they didn't have personal liability.

Slightly out there thought: perhaps Moth has a challenge/illness that would garner less sympathy but would benefit from getting him away from people and 'civilisation' while he cleaned up - alcoholism can give you tremors and long term cause all sorts of unpleasant neurological disorders they could have been warned about and used to garner sympathy. No money or access for booze (or drugs) and lots of exercise could have been considered a way to combat addiction. However, whatever the origins of the story it doesn't stop them being truly ghastly people.

With this I just assumed that the person doing the lending was wise to them being a bit crap with money/flaky (at best) and wanted to make the deal as formalised and watertight as possible. Maybe also was influenced by his wife or others around him to make sure not to be taken for a ride.

That would have been tolerated I think if it weren't for the fact they have made a lot of claims that his walking cured this terrible terminal condition. That's unforgivable behaviour. It's no different from Belle Gibson claiming healthy eating cured her cancer.

Charging 18% interest and then selling the debt on makes me think the 'cousin' in question was actually just a loan shark they borrowed the money off to get her off the hook/keep her out of prison, using the house as collateral.

This is an American outlet:

https://deadline.com/2025/07/the-salt-path-raynor-winn-accused-gillian-anderson-movie-1236450759/

Now on the BBC

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm2z0707mlgo

In the film and in interviews I’ve read with them, I can’t remember them ever saying the walking ‘cured’ Moth’s CBD. I haven’t read the book yet though.

It’s more that, despite having CBD, Moth was able to do the walk. It’s also indicated that his CBD symptoms were improving, but I don’t think they suggested that this was directly because of the walking.

People have directly shared extracts from the book that talk about him reversing his symptoms

Not just reversing the symptoms, but having an abnormal brain scan revert to normal, with signs of degeneration having disappeared.

That's it! Yeah, I mean that's a very hefty claim to make.

TooExtraImmatureCheddar posted a picture of an extract on this thread at 9.01

It is at the low end of credit card rates. Given that the lender was a distant relative who knew she was a thief, they had no obvious source of income and they were on the run from the law, I'm surprised the interest rate was only 18%.

But still nothing on the paper we do not name apart from the article yesterday refuting the Observer as misleading. I'm still expecting a sad face interview. Maybe at the weekend.

An interest rate of 18% per annum would be very low for a loan shark. It would be at least 20% per month.

The house in France is uninhabitable. IIRC they stayed there in a caravan.

Archive link

https://archive.ph/jaafU

I just had a look back at the extracts - in the article here, https://observer.co.uk/news/national/article/the-salt-path-whats-in-the-book-and-what-the-observer-has-found.

Although she says his CBD symptoms improve, she doesn’t actually claim that’s down to the walking.

So I don’t think it’s on the same level as Belle Gibson, where she told people they could cure themselves of cancer through juicing and healthy eating.

But I realise it’s pretty impossible to believe his symptoms have improved, given his condition is incurable. I understand that.

It was £150k by the time it made it to court due to accrued interest. I guess they made no payments and didn’t expect him to do anything

he probably sold it for 50k to the factorers who took the risk and expense of taking it to court. As the bank get first dibs they most likely didn’t recoup the full 150k

they probably didn’t go to France because of the debts there

when they went on the run they left a financial mess - I wonder if they’ve resolved it?

I thought, long before all of this came out, that he has an oddly absent look, like there is no one entirely there behind his eyes. And also that this also chimes with how his personality is absent from the book. She goes on and on about how she loves him but there's little real sense of what he's like as a person.

I'm amazed the relative lent them the money.

How did he think they'd pay the installments?

Mind you, he may well have thought it fairly low risk, since he could take the house if they didn't pay.

Tbf if they've made a financial gain at the loss of someone else and been dishonest in the doing so of that gain, they could be investigated by police for fraud.

Apologies if this has already been posted but GILLIAN KNEW.

Raynor sounds rude af tbh.

Ironically she does have the material for another best selling book if she actually wrote a tell all autobiography. It could even be adapted for a TV mini-series.😀

But whether the sum owed is £250,000 or £65,000, if they have no obvious source of income to pay it back, what is the point of the loan?

Unless the loan is made on the assumption that they will default, so the goal is to maximise the claim on the secured asset. I can see why somebody would do that, but I don’t think it’s the act of a caring relative.

I think you're being very very generous to the Walkers in your interpretation of what they have implied. I don't have the time right now to go back over the books but they have very much created an impression, in many people with the condition and their relatives, that the walking was an effective treatment

Anyway, it's clearly bollocks he ever had the condition so this is a moot point