Thread 23 : To feel disappointed - and now disgusted too - after reading this in The Observer about the author and her husband from The Salt Path book and film?

[DisappointedReader]

NO POSTS PLEASE UNTIL THREAD 22 IS FULL

The Observer's original exposé: The real Salt Path: how a blockbuster book and film were ...

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

Links to threads 2-16, the other 20 Observer articles and videos to date, Raynor Winn/Sally Walker's statement, our timeline and sources can all be accessed in the OP and first few posts of Thread 17: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5403285-thread-17-to-feel-disappointed-after-reading-this-in-the-observer-about-the-author-and-her-husband-from-the-salt-path-book-and-film?

Links to threads 18-20 can be found in the OP of Thread 21: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5460943-thread-21-to-feel-disappointed-and-now-disgusted-too-after-reading-this-in-the-observer-about-the-author-and-her-husband-from-the-salt-path-book-and-film?

Thread 22:www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5470952-thread-22-to-feel-disappointed-and-now-disgusted-too-after-reading-this-in-the-observer-about-the-author-and-her-husband-from-the-salt-path-book-and-film?

Most recent:

• Salt Path: A Very British Scandal, available on Sky Documentaries and NOW TV, 15th December 2025
• ‘Don’t look for the money. I’ve taken it all’: Salt Path author Raynor Winn’s ‘confession’ that she stole from her family | The Observer
• Observer Newsroom: The Real Salt Path Story, Thursday 8th January 2026

New posters joining us in the genuine spirit of our civil discourse are welcome. It would be helpful to get the background from at least some of the Observer exposé items before posting.
To all - Please be extremely cautious when it comes to naming or implicating people and addresses not in the public eye or with no direct connection to the story, and around the understandable health speculations, especially where details are unclear or still emerging. Remember, even Hollywood rabbits attract the odd flea. Please do not engage with drive-by scolders and ploppers who seem to have their own agenda and seek to derail. Avoid @'ing and quoting them as - from experience - this will only encourage them back to the threads. For over 6 months we have done amazingly well together for 22 very interesting, very serious and very silly threads so far. I can't be here as much as I'd like so all help with keeping our discussion walking along in our usual reasonable and respectful fashion is very welcome.

After 22,000 posts there are still new things to look out for on the path:
Podcast series (7 episodes) from The Observer's award-winning Investigative Journalist Chloe Hadjimatheou, 13th January 2026.
The Walkers: The real Salt Path | The Observer

After listening to some of The Walkers: The real Salt Path podcast episodes from The Observer today my thoughts are even more with the victims. I also believe that the publishers, agent and prizegivers must now act and be seen to act.

Please start each post with the podcast episode you are commenting on, for clarity and to help others avoid spoilers if they wish to do so. Many thanks.

As always, keep to the path, no saltiness, eat fudge and drink cider.

NO POSTS PLEASE UNTIL THREAD 22 IS FULL

I don't know, I posted the question at the end of the last thread, I remembered that we had somebody tracking the sales figures. I also thought that the sales figures spiked when the film came out, and then went into decline, I'm sure there was debate about whether Chloe's exposé had increased sales, long ago. Our correspondent found that it didn't, I'm concerned that Chloe hasn't checked them herself and is relying on the ex PRH person.

Good afternoon all and a warm welcome aboard our new thread. I hope you are all well today.

I can confirm that I have heard directly from Our Chloe that Phoebe is working with her and would be in touch on her behalf. Our Chloe is planning a final write up on the Salt Path in the Observer this weekend and would like to acknowledge you guys. Her colleague Phoebe is writing the piece about our threads here on Mumsnet. If you would like to take part then please do email Phoebe on the above address.

There is always the option to use your MN username rather than your real name if you would prefer that.

I hope I can count on you all only saying the most incredibly, nay excruciatingly, nice things, especially about me, otherwise I'll be cutting your cider and fudge rations!!!

Amazon UK doesn't give weekly sales numbers just rankings of books read and sold. In terms of books sold TSP ranked #1 on 8 June (TSP film was released on 30 May), then #2 on 6 July, #3 on 13 July (the week of Chloe's expose), #10 on 20 July, #19 on 27 July and out of the top 20 the following week.

TSP currently doesn't rank in the top 100 of non fiction book sales on Amazon. Thus the Amazon data seems to back up the weekly ST bestseller data and suggests that there was zero positive impact on TSP sales after Chloe's Observer expose.

That was the perception but brilliant to see the stats! Thanks so much.

TSP is currently ranked #5,507 on Kindle store. That implies that virtually no copies are being sold and may explain why you can buy the PB on Amazon for £5.48 (-50%)

Shuddering at the above clip still having the 'inspiring true story of hope' included... The book description should SO be amended....

Sal and Timmoth perpetually pursue their material needs at the expense of other people. They justify their mistreatment of other people and are able to rationalise it to themselves by viewing the people they mistreat as being somehow below them.
The lack of empathy, callousness, narcissistic entitlement, deceitfulness and selfishness is so blatantly obvious.
They view people as disposable objects, whether is a family member or a generous businessman like BC, it makes no difference. Once they’ve exploited them they just dispose of them.
They create and thrive in chaos.
They’re dangerous and I’m so grateful Our Chloe has exposed them.
The psychological aspect of their behaviour is what made me jump on the charabanc many threads ago (I have experienced narcissistic abuse and I know how painful and difficult it is, been studying the subject for years and I believe I can spot a narcissist from a mile). I’ve mentioned (around thread 5?) before a lot more details were revealed that i suspect Timmoth to be a covert narcissist and Sally to be more of a malignant narcissist with sociopathic tendencies (recklessness, impulsivity, carelessness).
Of course it’s just a guess and no diagnosis can be made but the new revelations fit the description and tick the boxes. It’s not uncommon for two narcissistic people to be in entwined relationship.

Thank you to @DissapointedReader for setting up the cheerful charabanc and thank you all for the insightful and funny comments. 😉

I hope some of the posters who’ve actively researched and pursued this story get in touch with Phoebe. I’ve only occasionally contributed to posts but I’ve read every single one and have really enjoyed being part of this intelligent and perceptive community. It’s absolutely great that our Chloe has referred to this thread a number of times. I feel sad that she’s moving on but hope the wheels on the charabanc keep turning for a little longer. Who knows, another journalist might take up the baton if more things come to light. I’d like to know if the walk in LL ever took place in the way the SW claims because I have my doubts.

Well we know it didn’t take place in the way she claims because she claims (in the book) that it was a gradually unfolding set of decisions: to do the Cape Wrath trail then go a bit further - then go a bit further still etc, but in an interview before the walk she stated that they’d be walking the whole length of the country.
But yes, how much of it did they actually walk?

I hope some of the posters who’ve actively researched and pursued this story get in touch with Phoebe.

Yes @AgitatedGoose I know some of them are definitely on here still and there has been a lot of (legitimate!) namechanging but hopefully others who did deep diving and haven't been around recently will see this and contact Phoebe. So many people have been in the charabanc and kept the momentum going on these threads.

I have nothing to declare but my ire.

Sorry Oscar.

Yes, one of the things that strikes me from the podcast in particular is that, contrary to TSP’s depiction of pretty much everyone as awful, cruel, dismissive, prejudiced jobsworths and snobs, an awful lot of people have beenincredibly kind to the Walkers.

Not just Bill Cole who seems to have opened his heart to them, admired SW’s writing, worried about TW’s health and generally bent over backwards to make their tenancy easy and pleasant, but several members of both families, who didn’t go to the police about the thefts from them, and some of whom continued to give free accommodation for significant periods, to a couple they had every reason to feel suspicious of and betrayed by.

‘Anne’, SW’s niece, was totally heroic to put them up for 18 months while her husband was recovering from a brain injury and she was trying to bring up young children and run the farm with help from extended family. I know she said she paid SW a basic rate for helping change the holiday lets, but she also said that the informal agreement was that it was somewhere they could live while SW applied for bankruptcy and they restarted their lives. But that SW never did, they didn’t get jobs, SW quit the fleece-wrapping job Anne got her to go on holiday, they weren’t pulling their weight on the farm at all, and nor were they trying to move their lives on in any way, and her dad said that if she wasn’t careful they’d be there for good, plus their young adult children staying at times.

No wonder she got impatient.

Yes, sorry, I’m one of them — was @OnlyAfterwards on the last thread. I just NC periodically, but I’ve been on the threads since the start.

Sleuths of MN gather and unite (& email phoebe!)

I suspect that in a pre-digital/pre-MN age it might have been much more difficult to untangle the web of lies and deceit that the Walker/Winns wove.

The digital evidence/footprint of their misdemeanours?

• the nephew's LI post that his uncle and aunt were pathological liars ( other skeletons in the cupboard...?)

• incriminating FB pages being removed by the son

• incriminating IG posts by Sal subsequently being removed

• social media sites such as Reddit, MN and FB, disputing the veracity of TSP but enabling contact to verify facts

• IG photo feed from Raynor Winn and contacts

• digital availability of sites such as Ancestry/Find my Past which enabled tracing of relatives inc Polly

• digital real estate/mapping sites which enabled geolocation of Grant, Polly etc

• the digital archive data which enables unearthing of historical press photos of Sal at school and on the farm etc

Hello all

Phoebe's deadline is the end of tomorrow ideally, so do email her asap today or perhaps by mid-tomorrow if you'd like to be involved.

Those wanting a print copy of Sunday's Observer may want to put in their order beforehand.

It will be so good if the important elements of this story continue to be highlighted and there is some outcome for the victims. That is the important thing.
I agree wholeheartedly with @BewilderingBrandy 's comment. While it's great that Our Chloe has referred so positively to this community of our threads (and it also brings justification against the odd drive-by scolder and plopper we have encountered), the most important thing for me is as I say in my OP above: After listening to some of The Walkers: The real Salt Path podcast episodes from The Observer today my thoughts are even more with the victims. I also believe that the publishers, agent and prizegivers must now act and be seen to act.

I'm going to openly declare that I really don't like the term 'internet sleuths'. For me it has negative connotations and our threads are such a positive environment with all the necessary reasonable boundaries in place. Yes there's a lot of fact-finding and information-examining, one or two of us might fit the 'sleuths' bill - not mentioning any names! - but we are also a broad church and a lot more than that.

As the bottom line I think an interest in fairness, honesty and decency is what ultimately brought, and has kept, most if not all of us here.

I was on the early threads (with a different username) and have just come back to MN after a break. I'm gobsmacked (and impressed) there are now a whopping 23 threads about this! I don't suppose anyone would do me a quick summary of what else has come out, as the consensus now seems to be that there's a long history of lies/scams etc. I knew about the original debt being from embezzlement (not a bad business deal) and some of the other stuff that came out in the first Chloe H article (the garage debt etc). And I saw the nephew's posts. But I thought Moth's illness turned out to be for real, which people were doubting when the story originally broke? Is there more?

Sorry if there's altogether too much for anyone to summarise. I really can't read all 22 previous threads, it will take me weeks! I haven't got access to the Sky documentary, sadly.

Here's an Observer article from July which might give some more background:
https://observer.co.uk/news/national/article/the-real-salt-path-how-the-couple-behind-a-bestseller-left-a-trail-of-debt-and-deceit

This. I think the drive by scolders and also some others in the doubting community have us down as a bunch of argumentative harpies, wanting to scour the depths of the books to enable us to seize on any discrepancy with a jubilant cry. But really I think most of us are just outraged on behalf of all those duped, deceived and defrauded and also a little angry with the blythe insouciance of the publishers, agents and advertisers.

We want justice. We want this pair to stop being hailed as great saviours and be derided as the great swindlers that they are. And for them to stop profiting from their 'unflinching truthful' lies.

Haven't read LL (and I've absolutely no intention of buying our copy back from the charity shop where it ended up!) but per a posted link on an earlier thread I was able to watch SW - in the guise of RW at a book festival - billed as "best selling author and long-distance walker". True to form she stuck rigidly to the LL story as set out in the book i.e. that on return to England they were hoping for a lift back to Cornwall. But were let down by whoever it was who had promised to provide transport. Forgotten the exact details but clearly remember RW telling the admiring audience that, as the car or whatever failed to materialise "we just kept on walking". I fear the only people who can answer your question are the Walkers themselves and in the unlikely situation that they would actually respond, there's a 50/50 chance of their info. being what actually happened. We might just as well toss a coin!

Welcome back. In a nutshell, very little of any of TSP or anything else was true. My best advice at this point is to listen to some or all of Chloe's new podcast series @ThisYearIsMyYear . You can just click on and listen to Episodes 1 and 2 for example without needing to register or subscribe, although it only costs £1 to do so.

The Walkers: The real Salt Path | The Observer

Another report (from July) of a suspicious interview with SW, to file with the othets...

https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/in-the-news/i-interviewed-salt-path-author/

There's a misconception that everybody here is rather obsessed with the TSP scandal. Well, yes and no. Unearthing the truth about TSP takes time. A lot of time. That's why investigative journalism ia so costly. Thankfully many of us here ( a bit like the Thursday Morning Detective Club) have the motivation and the means to unearth the truth. Others may not care, but that is irrelevant.

Ah, thanks, that looks like an entertaining listen @DisappointedReader. I remember being quite fascinated when the story originally broke by this idea of how much of a memoir needs to be literally true, how bad is it really if some events are 'glossed', etc, but it sounds as though things have gone far past that. I'm interested because I write this kind of thing myself - not the lying, I should add! I followed it in the media for a bit but then life overtook me tbh. I will catch up!

Their website is: hayefarmcider.com