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]

NO POSTS PLEASE UNTIL THREAD 23 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?
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

The only person responsible for Sally is Sally. She has chosen her path in life, often at great cost to others, and never shown remorse or a desire to explain or apologise. She has had many opportunities to set the record straight or tell the truth. I wish her no harm at all, but she is being scrutinised now because of choices she has made. Being held to account must be uncomfortable, but again this is the consequence of her actions.

Thank you @LetsBeSensible :)

What can be done @Vroomfondleswaistcoat? I think you are right and I think Salray would hate to have that prize removed. Someone a few days ago suggested that if we can't legally prove HNTDDD is Salray's first book (I know it's obvious to us :) but for the CB people to take the prize away, I'm assuming they would have to write to her, saying that they had legal proof that TSP was not her first book. While Salray, doesn't deny it, that means nothing legally.

If it can't be done in that way, the earlier poster suggested, they might be able to say that TSP had been brought into such disrepute, that it had been judged on its merit as a true memoir as well as first book. As it's veracity was now in question along with the resulting scandal, that they no longer want to be associated with it?

@Freshsocks i don’t know if it can be done like that. Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin got the Nobel Peace Prize but 30 years on we are still living with conflict between the peoples of their region, but the prize can’t be withdrawn- I think it’s similar here. It was awarded on what was known at the time, and can’t be withdrawn unless it’s shown to have been an invalid entry.

I agree @AlertCat, I haven't been able to find many examples of prizes being removed from authors. There have been a few, plagiarism and fraud, seem to be grounds for removal, but as you say it is very rare. Though presumably not impossible, not meeting the eligibility for entering would be the best grounds in this case, but that needs Salray to admit to being the author of HNTDDD, or for it to be legally proven.

Ultimately, if the two texts share more than a coincidental amount of similarities, then she either wrote HNTDDD, so TSP is not an original, first book, or she has plagiarised it. I would imagine either scenario would probably invalidate TSP for consideration of the CB prize?

It me, I thought we would be in on Sunday. Not sure why? Mistakes were made, recollections may differ. I will settle for us having been interviewed by the Observer.

Sally’s prizes, nominations or shortlisted fors can all be found on her personal website where she is very proud of them @Vroomfondleswaistcoat

I agree with so much of what has been said here this afternoon.
With regard the film, I do think it is a separate entity as such. It represents the book in its present form, regardless of truth. Remember our Simon being contacted on the issue of poet laureate and he corrected them only to be reassured that the film wasn’t real? Does that waive any rights to sue Sally now they know the book was largely fiction? The film does miss out huge chunks and probably because it is film, it blurs the truth anyway or adds things to make it more coherent or to raise an awareness here and there. I’m not sure the film company has grounds to sue. It’s a bit slippery really… Tim’s diagnosis is arguably the most harmful aspect of the books because it will have affected people and given misinformation about CBD/CBS much like a conspiracy theorist’s views on vaccines. Their criminality and the fact that they have had to role play these new and better versions of themselves in public is shameful but not as bad as this false narrative about Tim’s health (imo). So that needs to be addressed, as uncomfortable as it may be.
I agree that silence means guilt here.

Thank you. I have avoided her website like the plague so didn't realise that she'd touted her successes on there!

If TSP was seen as having plagiarised HNTDDD, it would be IWT who would have to sue Raynor Winn. I don't know what the CB people could do, I know it's crazy but Salray has just fronted everything out so far. If she just keeps her silence, she keeps her prize, maybe she thinks time will pass all this will be forgotten, then she can continue writing with her prize winning author status?

I think if there is a vulnerability to be sued, it may have little to do with the content of the film, and down to the fact that if she signed a legal contract when selling the film rights that it was an original work, and only her work, and materially true - ie the production company would have been legally reassured that they could go ahead with impunity and make the film, and potentially make a very healthy return, without having to worry that there would be someone popping up to say (for example) that it was their manuscript, or a scandal arising that it was all untrue. These things woukd risk the potential return of the film, so I imagine that they would have got SW to certify that it was hers / original / materially true. So when a scandal pops up because it is allegedly not materially true, allegedly not original, and possibly plagiarised from an earlier work, then that would suggest she would be in breach of contract - and if they suffered losses due to her being in breach then that is an issue? I am not a lawyer.

Will the real Izzy Wyn Thomas please stand up! I can now imagine Sally putting a wig on and role playing Izzy suing Raynor with Sally playing a double role of lawyer and judge.

So funny @HatStickBoots, she's had plenty of courtroom experience :)

So you don’t have to go there @Vroomfondleswaistcoat 💐 I have removed the unlawful CB prize.

“The Salt Path was shortlisted for the Costa Biography Award and the Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing, and in 2024 was named by the Sunday Times as one of the top one hundred books of the past fifty years.”

How it was shortlisted for a prize for nature writing is beyond me!

What's been going on with the AMA chat and all the deleted posts? Sorry, just catching up now.

It was being derailed @ThisQuirkyRaven by someone with their own agenda that was totally irrelevant to the subject matter and more of a personal attack on our Chloe and her work.

Hi @ThisQuirkyRaven, there were some inappropriate questions, not pleasant.

It is all interesting @Stoufer, it's a shame that we don't have a legal correspondent, with specialisms in book and film contracts. I'm not sure how much money the film made, from when it opened to the scandal, and since the scandal. If it has made a profit they might be happy to just let it be forgotten. The film on its own doesn't make much sense, it was only going to be big box office with those already invested in TSP and Raymoth.

It may be worth saying hello is there a contract lawyer reading this?

When I was talking about RW's Wiki page - an editor joined our discussion. Remember the US book reviewer with an interest in Moth - who knew his surname? Someone came on that contributed to US publications.

And @MargaretThursday spoke to Our Chloe - and who should pop up ,,,,

Another legal issue - which I assume was a result of the oft-mentioned legal read - is the comparison with RW's original second book. Lightly Salted Blackberries.

What the publishers did edit out was the substantially longer narrative in LSB compared to what was published of the court case in TSP.

Good idea @BeachcombingBrandy :)

This is an appeal to anyone reading these threads with a specialism in contract law, book and film, please can you give us your insight, in return we will give you fudge and cider aplenty :)

Thank you for your sterling services! Not exactly dripping with prizes, thankfully, and nothing for the books after TSP, hopefully. Yes, it baffles me - perhaps it was a very light year for nature writing? I suppose the best thing you can say is that her writing is 'accessible' (no long words or difficult descriptions, easy metaphors and quick allegories).

Thanks LetsBeSensible! I’m happy to keep an eye out during the night and perform the same public service (it’s daytime over here in Aotearoa).

Thank you although I keep somewhat Californian sleep-wake hours. I reported our drive by derailer within an hour or two, but HQ has less cover overnight I believe, so it was left up into the following day, so do all report any drive-by activity when you see it, but be patient regarding action.

Thanking both of you @LetsBeSensible and @Bauds1 :)

Sorry @ThisQuirkyRaven, I didn't elaborate earlier on the nature of the deleted question, not sure about repeating what exactly the questioner was asking, but they were implying that Chloe's investigations, might make Salray harm herself.

I reported them too. But only after a fool-hardy lapse of judgement caused me to break the cardinal rule of not engaging with drive-bys, forgetting it only keeps them harping on. I was adrift on a new sort of thread and emotion got the better of me...mistakes were made. Hand me the cider if there's any going for a remorseful outlaw.

You can come and sit with me @YourMoneyforFrothingandYourChipsforFree, I've let my emotions get the better of me, once or twice, here have a cider and an extra big bit of fudge :)

I've just had a look at TSP film Wikipedia page, it says the film took 17.7 million dollars at the box office. It is described as British biographical drama film, written by Rebecca Lenkiewicz based on the 2018 memoir TSP by Raynor Winn. I looked for information about the cost of the film to make, it was estimated on a number of sites at under 10 million. So the film made a profit, not as big as they hoped I expect, is it making any money now?