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 thought she ran the marathon not him.

I've seen posts on other sites from people saying that their relatives had been diagnosed with CBD and either that Moth's story had given them (false) hope or that it had made them feel responsible for their degeneration as they hadn't kept up their fitness levels. It's so cruel if they have lied for money.

Sounds like they might have let the kids believe he has this tragic diagnosis, almost Canoe Man style

The Observer reports that the couple wrote that the consultant said he had had it for approximately 6 years when he was "formally" diagnosed in 2013, giving 18 years now.

Bookmarking! Ignore me!

When I followed one of the Twitter/X links on the last thread, there was a clip from 'This Morning' of Raynor Winn publicising the film with Gillian Anderson.

The hosts asked after Moth, who wasn’t there, and RW explained his absence by launching into a description of how he'd very recently been 'rushed into hospital' and had been 'very ill'. Horror and concern were expressed but phew, he was now 'much better'.

Sorry to say it but the cynic in me feels a bit more sceptical about all this than I was since reading the Observer article this morning.

Feel a bit sorry for Jason and Gillian too as unless this is all proved to be outright falsehood by the Observer (unlikely) then next time they have interviews for a new show their plugging they are most likely going to be asked about this time and again.

I suspect he is unwell, perhaps diagnoses changed along the way or he’s an outlier. But hoping someone is unwell doesn’t seem like a good thing either, so regardless of the rest, I hope he’s ok.

Quite possibly. Everything else I've read in the piece seems to check out as robust journalism. Things have been worded very carefully indeed to avoid any obvious accusation of libel. The facts are supported with evidence while the less certain things (ie the question of Moths illness) are merely raised as such. I suppose it could also depend how this spokesperson is defining "misleading" but I think they'll have a hard job showing how it could be.

Wouldn’t they be asked about this again anyway, even if it does turn out to be completely false? I think people are going to have questions about this for years to come, à la the Belle Gibson case. I also feel sorry for GA and JI, as they’ve been dragged into this mess.

I’m fascinated by the whole thing! I gave up reading the book because it immediately didn’t ring true, especially the court case (DP is a lawyer and said it would be extremely unlikely to have happened the way she claimed in the book). I got massively told off for saying so though and for being too cynical and suspicious by friends who loved the book, so I’m now feeling vindicated 😆

I also tried to do a bit of digging around on them, and concluded that her name must be a pseudonym because there was nothing out there about her that wasn’t connected to the book, and no evidence of any court case (which should have been in the public domain). But it’s interesting to find that her pseudonym is quite like a “traditional” pseudonym/nom de plume, if it really is her grandmother’s maiden name plus her own maiden name. (A friend of mine writes thrillers under a pseudonym that is her own middle name plus her grandmother’s maiden name, for example.)

From all the evidence of this loan, plus the odd publishing company and house shenanigans, and his “illness”, it seems the likelihood is that he’s as much involved in it all as she is, which is a bit shocking!

Just checking in. I want to find out more about the true story!

The 18 years comes from p15 of the Salt Path. See 22.39 post

From the PSP Association website linked to via the archived page as the charity has now removed all references of Moth from their website is this write up of the cause of CBD:

“The primary cause of CBD is the abnormal accumulation of tau protein within the brain’s neurons. This protein accumulation is similar to other tauopathies, such as Alzheimer’s disease, but has distinct features and progression patterns in CBD. The tau proteins in people living with CBD tend to clump together. Different to the tau clumping in people living with PSP, in CBD, tau clumps in a plaque-type way, which then leads to cell dysfunction and death, particularly in the cerebral cortex and basal ganglia. These areas are critical for coordinating movement and cognitive functions, explaining the typical CBD symptoms such as rigidity, impaired movement, cognitive decline, and speech difficulties.”

The underlining is mine. CBD causes plaque to accumulate and cause brain cell death. Brain cells don’t rejuvenate themselves. How could the charity who are funding research into this disease so are therefore pretty knowledgeable about it have believed that Moth had CBD and that walking reversed his symptoms?!? They must have known from the beginning (many of them will have seen loved ones go through the disease’s progression) that the story wasn’t true and that he probably didn’t have it but the need to get a spotlight on their charity and raise funds means they must have gone along with their famous sufferer / fundraiser. Talk about being caught between a rock and a hard place. I want to hear what the charity has to say now.

I also find it very telling that con artists in the past would pretend to be rich or aristocratic or figures of authority but the modern grift is centred around victimhood or claiming to be from a marginalised group when you are not.

The media loves stories about middle-class people falling on hard times but triumphing over adversity by pulling themselves up by their bootstraps. They are being told exactly what you want to hear. A middle-class person who loses their house but now lives in a mini-van by the coast is an inspirational story; a working-class person who lives in a mini-van is a feckless, scumbag nuisance.

Country life interview from 6th June

“I like to think we're rewilding Moth as well as the land. By putting him back into his natural state – moving out in the fields all day – his health has improved almost miraculously, just as it did when we were walking the Coast Path.”

Both The Times and the Telegraph are onto it now.

Both behind the paywall.
The Times' version is in Books and refers to 'lies' , the Telegraph version is more gung-ho and refers to the £64K.

If anyone has access and can copy and paste - would be interesting.

I'm absolutely gutted about this. The Salt Path is one of my favourite books and I've recommended it to loads of people over the years. I've read the other two as well and have the new one on pre-order although I guess there's now a very strong chance I'll never get to read it.
The dream I have of doing a long distance coastal walk one day was inspired by Raynor Winn. 🙁 And now you're telling me she's just a grifter like all the rest of them. What a world.

I mentioned this on the previous thread.

The inside cover of the book refers to names being changed to protect privacy but 'apart from that' the author has assured the publisher that everything else is a true account.

How does she stand now?

I think you might find the Times one at the end of Thread One, if it's the same one it's an opinion piece rather than an article.

Carry on being cynical and suspicious. Best way to be!

Nothing to stop you doing the coastal walk still.
Just know it won't cure any terminal neurological conditions

Oh right. Fair enough. The Observer article doesn't explain that, however. Just diagnosis in 2013.

Luckily the only thing wrong with me is that I'm a bit gullible.

Just looking at some of the recent promo photos for the film I sensed a lack of warnth between the actors and the people they are playing. I wonder if they have developed some concerns over time and at what point they got wind of this? I can’t imagine they just found out this morning like the rest of us.