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

Do speeding tickets always lead to points on your licence? If so, what happens if you get too many points to drive but aren't aware of it because all the post went to your old address?

Yes - I think that in England you're offered one go at a speed awareness course instead of points, provided you weren't exceeding it too egrariously, but otherwise always points.
It would be your fault if you hadn't notified the DVLA of your change of address, and you'd be in a lot of trouble driving banned.
Plus some driving offenses don't just mean points, they're a court appearance, so again not showing up would get you into a whole lot more trouble.

I thought about this @Vroomfondleswaistcoat, I'm wondering how many faithful they still have, there is plenty of room for them to have other people on that property. As for Tim's health, in view of what has come out, I should think he will be seen by a different neurologist from now on, so probably fresh tests.

Re out of date addresses and speeding fines, Google AI (which is not always reliable) says:

• fine of up to £1,000 for not notifying DVLA of new address.

• if speed camera records your car, notice of intended prosecution (NIP) is sent out asking who the driver was - if not answered, automatic conviction for "failing to provide driver details", and fine and penalty points (usually 3 to 6) are sent to the (old) address. Accumulating points for missed NIPs can lead to disqualification, esp if multiple tickets are involved.

I don't know how accurate this is, or whether relevant to TE and SW, but I feel I've learned something about the law.

Dave and Julie might be hanging out with Moth @Vroomfondleswaistcoat :)

Interesting questions!
I had hoped that by listening to the podcasts - and I managed all 7 - that this would put an end to further questions, but not so. I think that Maxine Farrimond revealed that she had in desperation opened some of the mail intended for the former occupiers. (given the situation I would have done the same.) She featured in the original Observer story, and reported receiving a sudden deluge of threatening letters/red reminders - easy to spot from the envelopes. I wondered at the time whether this was because the Royal Mail forwarding service, which RW said in TSP that they had set up, had expired. (The mail included letters from France b.t.w.) The speeding fines would have shown where this offence took place - clearly they were not on the path!
I think the answer to your question re. speeding tickets is yes, because years ago I had two points (speeding) and a third meant disqualification. Following a 3rd speeding offence I opted for a "speed awareness course", which must have worked as my licence has remained "clean" ever since. But I think you are suggesting that TW could probably have be driving whilst disqualified. (? and blissfully ignorant!) If so I agree.

Despite CH's great articles, podcasts and documentary, I think some questions remain unanswered:

• why did they move to Wales?
• was there an investment which went wrong?
• why did Sal leave her role at the Abersoch hotel and is there any evidence of criminality
• why did TW leave his role at the NT property?
• why did they decide to invest in the French property when they were already financially stretched
• when did they come up with the idea of walking the SWCP and turning it into a book?
• what did they do at Polly's for 18 months?
• is there anything physically wrong with TW (apart from cardiac issues) and, if so, what?
• how much of the SWCP did they walk and when?
• how much were they getting each month and were they as impoverished as they claimed?
• how did they meet Anna and get offered the flat in Polruan?
• how much creative input did TW have into TSP?
• when did they meet D&J and who are D&J?
• how much involvement did GMC have in the MSS that was submitted to PRH?
• when did PRH realise that TSP was far from being the unflinchingly honest book that they publicised it as?
• how much of LL actually took place as described?

This is brilliant & hilarious! So much talent on these threads. Don’t give Moth ideas! :)

The more I think about it, the more I conclude as others have that they are in a bit of a Catch 22 situation. Under the level of scrutiny they are now, Timoth CAN'T be seen out and about looking the picture of beamish good health. It also means he's pretty much under house arrest and can't enjoy the money. What could they do? I think a move abroad and identity change would be the only option. Pretty certain any long distance walks are out, especially in the UK, maybe abroad more possible. If he does now have cardiac issues (and who knows) they would potentially need very deep pockets to cover the cost of healthcare, depending where they went and despite the success of TSP, we are not in JK Rowling territory or anywhere close and a number of income streams are now cut off.

I'm convinced there will never be a mea culpa, partly because even if they admitted and grovellingly apologised for the thefts (etc) the massive question marks around his health and diagnosis to this point are not going away, even if he claims Divine intervention next week (sorry, shouldn't give them ideas)

I've said before that I think they could probably get away with buying a smallholding/croft somewhere in Scotland (so they can still benefit from the NHS, which is going to become more necessary as they age) and somewhere quite rural so they don't have to run the risk of too many people. They could live a normal life away from the public eye, which will come hard for them, no more admiration, no fawning groupies hanging on their every word. They can keep chickens and keep their heads down.

I think it's all they can do, going forward. They really aren't going to be able to open their mouths now without everyone doubting every single word either one of them says, and wolf has been cried so many times that they really can't expect to be taken seriously.

My DW thinks I am obsessed with this story - if so, then so be it! I'm in good company!
Just to take your bullet point 6, this to me illustrates the "Alice through the Looking Glass" situation - i.e. that we have to reverse the order of events to arrive at what actually happened. So I think SW (? in conjunction with TW) wrote or at least sketched out in outline TSP first, then drove (? exceeded the speed limit ) to some of the locations to get a flavour of the scenery etc. and/or simply to have a holiday.
And the point you raised in bullet point 7 (what did they do at Pollys) has been bugging me all along, only I would like to know just how they filled their "spare" time in general - when they weren't making cider or rewilding, for example. (sorry, forgot to insert "allegedly" before "making".)

"Alice through the Looking Glass" situation

That very much sums up so much of all this @UpfromSomerset . Nothing is as it first appears and everything can get turned upside down in an instant.

Lewis Carroll pushed through the sieve of 1984.

Well, as regards what they did at 'Polly's', 'Anne' (the real life Polly) says a few things in the podcast (episode 6, I think). She says they were still very much lying low from debt collectors and bailiffs and keeping a low profile -- they said they knew they would never find them. The plan was that SW would apply for bankruptcy to clear her debts and that they would both get jobs and restart their lives. There was still some distrust, but 'Anne' had a flat in a converted shed (properly heated and fully converted, with French windows to a garden and a pantry, unlike the way it's depicted in TSP) she could let them stay in rent-free, and discussed it with her parents in advance, and felt it would the right thing to do.

Anne says that initially the Walkers were grateful and offered to help out on the farm, as her husband was recovering from a brain injury, so her mother (SW's sister) and her brother were helping out on the farm, but that they also had fun in a hot tub at night. That she paid SW a basic rate for cleaning her holiday lets, and kept her ear out for local work, and hosted their children when they visited.

But that gradually things went sour. SW dropped the fleece-wrapping job Anne got her, after only a few days to go on a walking holiday -- which they did twice during the 18th months, once on the fleecewrapping money, once on TW's PIP. They weren't pulling their weight around the farm, SW hadn't applied for bankruptcy, they weren't working, and Anne felt financially responsible for a whole extra family when her marriage was falling apart and she had three children and a farm to run. Her father told her they'd be there forever and she finally asked them to leave in early 2015. Then they went to live in SW's mother's house.

Very accurate recounting of that episode there @AbovetheVaultedSky

ETA the bankruptcy thing (or lack of it) interests me. Why wouldn't they apply, ahving said that they would? Sheer bone idleness or something else? Bit outside my experience but from what we know of their situation it would seem to have been sensible.

@AbovetheVaultedSky : "Anne says that initially the Walkers were grateful and offered to help out on the farm, as her husband was recovering from a brain injury,": A horrible thought, but could this have provided inspiration?

There are still a lot of unanswered questions @ThompsonTwin, on point one, I speculate the move to Wales was simply a dream that she and Tim had. To live in the countryside with a bit of land, Wales being affordable for them, especially with an acre of land. Room for the kids to run around and keep a few chickens and sheep.

I don't think that Tim invested and lost money, when they sold the first house, or they moved because of the child nearly being knocked down. The house they were buying in Wales must have cost more than their terraced house, I'm assuming, I can't remember the figures, I realise that property in rural Wales, a house with an acre, would have been cheaper than a similar property in their locality, but still more than their terraced house?

Wouldn't the Welsh house have needed a bigger mortgage than the one they already had, whether Tim lost money or not, Isn't that upgrading? yet Salray glumwashing said "It was all that we could afford" making it sound like they were forced into a hovel, not their dream house, forever home. They couldn't afford the Welsh house without securing a larger mortgage than they already had, whether Tim lost money or not.

And also, bearing in mind that Sal 'always wanted to be a writer' - why didn't she use the excuse 'I'm writing a book'? She could have bought herself if not more time then at least a lack of interference and expectation of getting a job if she'd wheeled out the good old 'I'm using the downtime to realise my dream of writing a novel.'

God knows, I've seen enough people use it as an excuse for dossing around all day. Even used it myself, once or twice (am supposed to be writing now, but am finding any excuse not to. My oven has never BEEN so clean...)

@Freshsocks : "Salray glumwashing said "It was all that we could afford" making it sound like they were forced into a hovel, not their dream house". An excellent spot: the Welsh house was "all that we could afford", yet was also the dream hone which SW had hoped to buy for ten years.

I think that one of the things that has kept these threads so busy is the vast number of inconsistencies within the books themselves, in the many interviews (despite SW's guardedness), and otherwise in the public domain.

Much as we loved our home and never wanted to leave, contrary to the Observer’s allegations, we have never used it as our legal address for the purpose of avoiding debt. I put a postal redirection in place for three years following the eviction, there was nothing more I could do to control the post. As anyone who has ever moved house knows, despite our best efforts, some post will always sneak through the net and end up at your old property. As anyone who has ever lost their home knows, when you are evicted, changing the address on your driving licence is the least of your concerns.
R Winn July statement

I thought it was interesting - with the redirection and driving licence - that she wrote in a persuasive way to get anyone sensible on board.

The redirection would have taken them up to 2016, if true, but it isn't true about things slipping through when all the former residents have left and there is a redirection. That is more likely when one person leaves the house or there are two people with the same name, and one has left.

Re the Welsh house - it's as though Sal simultaneously wanted sympathy ("all we could afford") and jealousy ("Got the house we'd wanted for ten years!").

So she flip-flops between the two.

Hello all! I’ve come to re-join your ranks after getting lost on the path unintentionally postingunder various other usernames on these threads, and then only just finding this thread. May I request permission to re-join?

Your seat is still warm @Fandango52 :)

Ep. 5 (are we still doing this?)
I still can't believe Cecille's story about the simultaneously missing Sally and her grandparents cleaned out by Sally. I think that is 2007.

What year did she empty her mother's account?

By 2016, according to them the 'walk' was long over. In reality they had spent quite a lot of time at the longsuffering 'Anne's', where they didn't appear to be doing very much or have many calls on their time (apart from disappearing off walking) so one would think by then they could have got around to notifying the DVLA, which is a fair biggie legally.

Somehow I'm not surprised that they didn't or that Timoth was acquiring parking tickets and speeding fines.

ETA we missed a trick at Christmas. Tiny Timoth, gallantly cheering from a corner " God bless us, everyone!" in a saintly way despite the hardness of his life.

Afternoon all. I hope you are well today.

I'm mildly tempted to do this, with forewords from Our Chloe and Our Simon (including a poem please, OS) and all profits split between cider and fudge PSPA and a homeless charity local to the SWCP.

I'm a bit worried that we're going to end up with a two-tier charabanc, with those on the top deck being those who could listen to the podcast and those of us in the cheap seats desperately picking through the second hand information that's being shouted down the stairs.

I daren't take out any more subscriptions because I inevitably fail to remember to cancel them at the appropriate times, so I'm relying on people like you @BewilderingBrandy to pass on findings from the episodes...