Thread 24 : To feel disappointed - and now disgusted and vindicated too - after reading this in The Observer about the author and her husband from The Salt Path book and film?

[DisappointedReader]

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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?
Thread 23:www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5475246-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?

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 23 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 23,000 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 (and including a shoutout to our threads), 13th January 2026:

The Walkers: The real Salt Path | The Observer

• The Observer, 18th January 2026:

The Salt Path scandal: a hunch, a hint and six months of ... and Publishers agree The Salt Path crossed a line | The Observer

• BBC Podcast, 28th January 2026 (to be confirmed)

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.

After listening to of The Walkers: The real Salt Path podcast episodes from The Observer 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.

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

NO POSTS PLEASE UNTIL THREAD 23 IS FULL

That’s a very heartfelt response. I identify with her own feeling of sickness as she views them through the true lens because it is such a stark contrast, the total opposite of the people in the book. Sally and Tim anre not heroes of any kind or Eco warriors or sticking two fingers up at The Man while being lovely to everyone in need. That’s all just a convenient little act.
Unfortunately Ms Ellen hasn’t considered the option that Sally and Tim don’t actually feel any guilt or remorse in the way that she expects them to. Sally can certainly fake emotions in her writing and to whomever she wants to manipulate but I believe she turns it straight off and smirks to herself and thinks “Sucker!” when their back is turned. Can these people really have empathy or sympathy when you look at the evidence that says not? Do they feel guilt? Ms Ellen is absolutely right in her thoughts about how Winn/Walker could possibly write those books with the knowledge that they contain such dreadful misinformation. She imagines that they feel guilt and that’s why Sal is so unforthcoming etc or “guarded” as GA remarked. Nope. It’s more likely that she knows she must stick to the script. She certainly knows how to look self satisfied when boasting about her so-called achievements in the literary world and laughing and having fun and games with other authors at publicity events.

Yes, that was also reported by the Boookseller previously, which is one reason why OWH being bought in June 2025 seems odd. No idea about publishing so it remains a mystery to me.

June 2021 - 2 book deal
https://www.thebookseller.com/rights/winn-writes-two-more-books-pmj-1273070#:~:text=The%20Salt%20Path%20author%20Raynor%20Winn%20has,following%20major%20sales%20of%20her%20previous%20titles.

June 2025 - PRH buys OWH
https://www.thebookseller.com/rights/penguin-michael-joseph-buys-raynor-winns-book-on-coast-to-coast-walk

I think you are completely right. The way that BC was emotionally manipulated suggests a complete lack of empathy imo.

Thank you.

So… could it have been a … lie?
Perhaps the hospital had told him to expect an appointment for some kind of scan after Christmas, so to keep his diary free?

That’s made me chuckle! I did think of that! The re-write with corrections would be longer than the original! I did think they could have the corrected version written on A4 and laminated, hanging from string attached to the shelf.

Absolutely. When I re-read the passages in her books which relate to that period of time with Bill and his wife, the farm…. Boy 😡 I just think, what a <insert blasphemy of choice>
They didn’t give a damn about their own parents either or anyone at all bar their children.

But if that were the case, why the sudden refusal to answer Bill’s concerned messages? They just ghosted the poor man and left him. If there was any compassion in Sally Walker and they weren’t just spinning a line, she/they would surely have answered Bill with relief and told him Moth was ok.

I agree @HatStickBoots, they are selfish people.
I'm planning to go into my local Waterstones on Friday, should I take a copy of TSP to the counter and ask if they can assure me that it is a true story, as I want to buy it for someone with a neurological condition and I don't want to give them false hope, I wonder what they will say?

What a fantastic idea. I’d do the same but I’d probably start convulsing with laughter and wetting myself before I could splutter a single word.

The second part says that they will 'publish' the book which is slightly different to buying it. I wonder whether this is just PRH having a spot of 'mentionitis', dropping in information about the forthcoming book without having anything really new to say about it? So it was already signed and by saying 'hey look, this other book that we signed that you might have forgotten about? Well, we're actually going to be bringing it out soon, so take note!'

Maybe they'd just received the manuscript so paid out the second installment of the advance and just created 'news' about the book to raise its profile.

At this point the ball is probably in PRH's court. The powers that be probably realise that Sal has played them like a violin but has also been a huge money spinner for them. They may also reckon that there are still a lot of die hard fans out there who will buy anything she churns out. So if they do release a sanitised version of OWH, it may sell relatively well. The bottom line vs higher values such as the trust a reader places in the PRH brand built up over the last 90 years. It's their call.

I like this Idea @RueMouffetard, the truth from the charabanc, I don't know if MN would authorise the use of their name. Most of these journalists writing about this scandal seem so lazy, not OC I hasten to add, there is probably a good chance the article would get used by others as a source. So much of what we discuss and discover gets lost in the threads, if it was in an article for all to read.

I'm going to put on my best straight face @HatStickBoots and try it, I could even ask for the manager if the person can't help me.

First scenario then: a lie.

Just noticed there is a programme on at 7.30 today on BBC4 with 'Explorer Paul Rose' walking the SWCP - for those of us who have not seen the coast path and can't bring ourselves to watch the film.

That is a very good idea, as you say, for anyone who wants to see the SWCP. The film, as I understand it, does not give this at all. It is filmed around Bristol, in West Sussex, Gloucestershire. There are scenes on the South Wales coast which is why, incongruously, the sea is sometimes on the wrong side in the next scene.

Thank you for letting us know about this programme @RainyTuesdaysAndSunnyWednesdays, It was beautiful filmed in the Sky documentary, I don't want to develop an aversion to the SWCP because of Raynor Winn. Just wondering when it was filmed now, I hope he is not going to talk about the book :)

I'd never thought of this before, but in that pic (of the Dastardly Duo at TSP film premiere) it looks like they divvied up the Wedding Suit to wear between them ...

I thought it was a new release - as it isn't available yet - but all the videos say 2016 so pre-TSP.

Thank you @BeachcombingBrandy, massive sigh of relief, I had better warm the telly up :)

Bill Coles is a successful city banker so no fool. He was very clear he knew what Tim was telling him. So was the friend who witnessed the exchange.Tim was playing him
to buy time to avoid making cider.

Thank you for this! We’ve set it to record.

I thought the same thing! What a pair of tossers.

It doesn’t make much sense to me either.

Though I have seen a situation where a friend had a two-book deal (with a different PRH imprint, come to think of it) where she published an ‘extra’ novel with them in between book 1 and book 2 that was a separate sale, independent of the original two-book contract. I don’t remember the detail, but I think the interim book was an idea she’d had for a shorter, topical book, rather than the kind of thing she usually wrote.

It might be a stretch, but I suppose it’s just possible that the two book deal was for ‘traditional’ Raymoth fare, and OWH was a somewhat different solo walk book that was contracted separately?

Though that still doesn’t explain buying it in June for an October release….?

Why not both?

Late night greetings all. I hope you are having a peaceful night, or a good day to our Southern Hemisphere charabancers.

Here, quite unbelievably, after seven months of up the garden path twists and turns, is our quarter century thread. As usual please fill up thread 24 before making your way aboard our community charabanc and a repost of this link in the final posts would be the seagull's chips: Thread 25 : To feel disappointed - and disgusted and vindicated now too - after reading this in The Observer about the author and her husband from The Salt Path book and film? | Mumsnet