Thread 26 : 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?

[DisappointedReader]

NO POSTS PLEASE UNTIL THREAD 25 IS FULL

Please see the OP of Thread 25 for all the links to The Observer's reporting and podcast series, our threads one to 24 and so on.

After 25,000 posts there are still new things to discuss:
BBC Sounds - Secrets of the Salt Path - Available Episodes
If you are posting about a podcast, please start your post with the episode number you are commenting on, for clarity and to help others avoid spoilers if they wish to do so.

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. The Observer's excellent podcast series The Walkers (link in Thread 25) covers most things.
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, especially where details are unclear or still emerging. Remember, even Hollywood rabbits attract the odd flea: please do not engage with drive-by scolders 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 8 months we have done amazingly well together for 25 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.

As ever, as we embark on our 26th thread riding the community charabanc, keep to the path, no saltiness, eat fudge and drink cider.

NO POSTS PLEASE UNTIL THREAD 25 IS FULL: www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5485730-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?

I agree @MulberryBrandy - also a bit of whitewashing maybe - after all, who could possibly be mean enough to criticise her for promoting someone’s fundraising page for such a good cause…

While it is insensitive of her in some ways to still be hitching her wagon to the CBD cause, anything that raises profiles or helps in raising money for the cause should be a good thing though?

She's more than likely going to come out with the line that they were led to believe that Moth had CBD and lived their lives accordingly and it was only when he didn't deteriorate at the rate expected that they realised it had been a misdiagnosis. An utter fib, of course, but I bet that is the line she takes.

Oh, they’ve probably joined the ranks of the Big Old Meanies who didn’t trust her.

I agree that is likely to be her course of action, but they did not live their lives accordingly. She very proudly made it publicly loud and clear that that they did not follow medical advice. Then of course we fall down the whole rabbit hole of not actually having been given a diagnosis anyway … and completely making all that up! <Awkward!>

Continuing to hitch their wagon/flying tent/sieve to a charity that has disowned them is very unwelcome and reminds me of a certain DJ in a shiny tracksuit and gold medallions using charities as a self righteous umbrella over his unforgivable offences.

So true @HatStickBoots, that particular person carried out terrible acts under the cover of charity, they had friendships with Margaret Thatcher (he was a personal guest at Chequers) and Prince Charles, as he was at the time, they were asked their opinion and perceived as a man representative of the British public. There is no amount of money contributed to charity that makes his actions justifiable, the harm that he did to his victims was more costly than money.

Salray by comparison is Mother Teresa, I'm wondering if she is continuing making the occasional post, so that when the film is released in America and people look at her Instagram they will think it's business as usual, the charity has dropped her, what are they now expected to do, they can't ask her not to make supportive posts, well they could ask her, but I don't see any way that they could stop her. I'm wondering what scheme Sally and Tim have up their sleeve, they know this charity has ceased its connection with them and why.

'We realised over time that the diagnosis we never got must have been wrong!' is a difficult one to pull off.

It would make an excellent Punch cartoon! 😀

I agree with you on all points. It’s a simple enough thing to do, to share a page for the benefit of the lad in question. I hope she’s donating a good sum herself.

I wonder how generous they would be @HatStickBoots, they raised money with the walk with Dave and Julie, but we didn't find evidence of them making many donations, or did we? I realise they could be quietly giving and we wouldn't know, but we have found out through Chloe's investigation that they don't have a reputation for generosity :)

There has been discussion earlier of an ulterior motive, when Sally made this particular post, it just seems bizarre that Salray should do this considering what has occurred, is this Sally trying to continue the CBD connection in her remaining followers minds, as discussed, or maybe she is trying to see if it creates likes, what on earth must be going on in Sally's mind?

All the time they were pretending that Moth himself had CBD, I think they were quietly assuming that people would be charitable towards them too, finding them deserving of any money raised because they would need it. I don’t think they bothered to donate anything from their personal accounts. I think the charity walks were just a big show of “Look at us! Aren’t we good?! Moths doing so well isn’t he? You wouldn’t think he had CBD would you? That’s because of the walking! But yes, he still has CBD, even though it’s miraculously reversing itself, yes, very funny isn’t it? Titter! I don’t understand these things. But there you are!”

Moth claims to have donated £1,000 to PSPA via Just Giving for his 2023 London Marathon walk. £16k raised in total. Small beer compared to the millions Sal made from TSP's sales that were anchored in a lie about Moth's initial CBD diagnosis in Aug 2013.

Sally is a professional manipulator. She never acknowledges guilt or remorse, she always makes excuses for her behaviour. To think they published HNTDDD and took it to a local bookshop in Pwllheli to sell a story of how they exploited the goodwill of the Hemmings in a cruel way.

Everything is about Sally and Tim Walker and putting themselves in a good light. She lapped up the adoration and money and wants it to continue.

Very very true MulberryBrandy. I also agree that £1000 to the PSPA is extremely small potatoes from this couple.

i don’t see how they can ever claim Moth was misdiagnosed when he told BC he ( Moth) was dying in Nov 21 - yet LL has the magic Xmas tree scan happening at the same time!

I'm sure she can spin this. "He'd had some bad news and he started catastrophising, he misunderstood (because of his condition affecting his processing ability) what he'd been told and went straight to the worst case scenario'. Oh, she will have an explanation for everything. But I don't think people are going to have much patience with her now. Even if she tries to find a platform to spout all her excuses, she's going to get shouted down. I devoutly hope so anyway.

Putting up the odd picture and leaving the odd remark on Insta (or wherever she's doing it) but not enabling anyone to reply or comment at least shows she's running scared. Because for advertising purposes alone she should be entering into dialogue with potential customers, and shutting down any response is not good, whatever the excuse.

I believe this too, that’s exactly how her mind works. It’s constantly searching for excuses and plausible explanations. This must be how she’s such a successful manipulator. It can be exhausting to argue with somebody like this. However, she’s had every opportunity to come out and say something like this, but hasn’t. Her success would then be based on having not listened properly or been able to process the information, but she was present (in the books) to hear the news also… but still it won’t wash because there’s no evidence of it happening. I think her lawyers have her on a very tight leash.

I agree, shutting down a two way communication with your readership is very bad. She elevated herself to guru-like status and her inability to engage with people was excused as her shyness and low self esteem. That was never the real reason.

@HatStickBoots - I suspect that, if challenged as to why she didn't explain earlier - she will say that it was Moth's health and therefore not up to her to comment, she didn't want to speak for him, didn't want to have to say how bad his mental confusion was, it was his business and not hers.... etc etc.

I really hope her lawyers have told her to button it.

I think the silence is deafening for that very reason. Saying nothing because there is no way forward. She has created a limbo for themselves where only the symbolism of a hastily erected pop up tent and nature’s beauty, is allowed to exist.

@HatStickBoots : "She has created a limbo for themselves". This made me imagine a limbo-dancing set up in the back garden.

I’m amused by the idea of SW having her own lawyers, on her side, advising her on how best to extricate herself from her self-caused mess, when her literary scam started with a full account of her intense dislike of the entire legal establishment, its solicitors, barristers and judges, which she sees as stacked against the ‘unrepresented masses … vulnerable people with no access to justice’. And her ringing, leather-jacketed courtroom accusation that the judge is wrong, and behaving as if he’s personally taking their home, and saintly Moth forgiving the savvy barrister for being equally ‘wrong’.

Of course that’s almost certainly pure fiction. Even if they did go to court ten times in three years and represent themselves, the only reason SW hadn’t already gone to prison for her embezzlement from Martin Hemmings was because of an expensive lawyer (who probably had soft hands and wore a tie, two things she never likes) who was able to enforce an NDA and an undertaking to take no further legal action if she repaid MH.

The entire literary scam was only able to happen because of a lawyer. And now she’s presumably reliant on them again.

Speaking of fiction, I still haven't been able to bring myself to read any non-fiction since the scandal broke, and that was usually my go to. My partner encouraged me to try fantasy books. I can't say it's a bad thing, I am currently fully immersed in the Disc World and would be hard pushed to find a better character than Death in ANY book. Also, at least I know it's definitely made up 🤣 Winn may have closed my non-fiction door, but the open window led to a different, and arguably better universe.

Well, talking of creating a limbo for themselves and books. I was in Totnes the other day. For those that aren't up on Totnes - it is the centre for ageing hippies and Trustafarians. Good for books, like one I saw: 'Let Your Children Go Back To Nature'.

I, of course, looked to see where the the Raynor Winn 3 books were - and was amused to see them in the section Climbing/Expeditions. Hilariously, placed next to 'Touching the Void', and 'Into Thin Air' - oh I do hope so. ✌

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