Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Site stuff

Join our Innovation Panel to try new features early and help make Mumsnet better.

Announcement re deletion of Wig and Robe/Judge Flounce threads

871 replies

carrie (mumsnet) · 13/01/2005 13:15

Dear mumsnetters,

We are now able to shed a bit more light as to what actually occurred re the Wig and Robe/Judge Flounce episode. We are pretty sure (having received a confession of as much) that, as some of you suspected, W&R/JF was a non-lawyer masquerading as a QC. Given this knowledge we have deleted the relevant postings and banned the user from the site.

If nothing else the whole business is a salutary reminder that you can never be completely sure that folks are who they say they are and neither should you necessarily completely trust the advice, especially "professional" advice, posted on mumsnet.

As a result of some concerns raised by you we are looking into making parts of the site, the swaps and weight loss clubs for example, something that operates via mumsnet HQ so that people's addresses are not being circulated. If anyone has any other suggestions then please [email protected] or post them here and we promise to consider them.

We?d also remind folks that when organising meet ups you should take the same precautions you would when meeting anyone from the net - make sure you meet in a public place and that others know where you are going.

Having said all that, it would be a shame if this relatively rare occurrence of someone pretending to be someone they are not changed the warm, supportive, welcoming and caring atmosphere on mumsnet - and we're confident that you won't let it!

Thanks for all the supportive and helpful emails we've received from so many of you.

Carrie, Rachel and Justine

OP posts:
elliott · 13/01/2005 15:42

kayleigh, you may jest, but it took me ages to realise that BearintheBigBlueHouse was a man - even though I knew his partner was female!

Kayleigh · 13/01/2005 15:42

oooh yes lockets, you may be right. Maybe they are in cahoots ?!

munnzieb · 13/01/2005 15:43

hold on guys back track, those pics of the woman - who the hell were they then? and y was I so blonde I didn't pick up the titles of the pics? I'm confused now!

Prettybird · 13/01/2005 15:44

WWW - I tried again when I saw all this keffuffle about WnR/JF (I wondered if he had sussed WnR - but think he's made the comment before he/she started posting) - but all I got back was the reference to the Mel Gibson film (which we had watached and enjoyed the night before).

I will try again - but I don't think he is for shifting. I think he is worred about making unfounded accusations - after all, it is just his suspicion/gut feel

Kayleigh · 13/01/2005 15:44

elliot

Marina · 13/01/2005 15:46

elliott, BITBBH had me confused too...not so BigGayDad or Daddycool, to be honest.
Do get him to tell us, Prettybird, please...

pixiefish · 13/01/2005 15:49

I'd just like to thank PPH, Aloha and anyone else who had their doubt for contacting the MN team and to the MN team for their actions since.

I have no legal knowledge at all and was taken in by her- I had no knowledge to dispute anything she said- but then again I wouldn't take as gospel leagle advice off the web. I did, however, go to my doctor armed with medical advice that I asked for off MN regarding my ingrown toenail and my dd's molluscum.

I liked her abrasive manner at times but certainly didn't like it when she 'attacked' pph. I was wary of her as she tried to infiltrate and ingratiate herself too quickly for my liking. Having said that I take ages to make friends so I also gave her the benefit of the doubt and just put it down to her personality- we can't all be the same.

I also noticed that when things were getting sticky she bumped the thread about her son and the thread where she gave mieow a computer.

Thw whole thing is just too wierd for me- she could have quietly gone away if she'd wanted without all that fuss. Seems to me she believes her own publicity or as someone has suggested it was some stupid experiment that had to be finished- will keep an eye out on the sunday papers now.

I do think it was an attention seeking thing from a very lonely person who found themselves wanted and liked in this virtual world- shame was that even here they had to lie to be liked

munnzieb · 13/01/2005 15:52

I thought 90% of ppl on here were women and 10% were dads/H/P. DH keeps telling me how do I know they're all women on here, but I cna't see many men chatting about tv or TTC!

elliott · 13/01/2005 15:52

Marina, glad it wasn't just me! I have to say I think in the early days he was quite coy about it so no direct references. But I really am hopeless about this male/female language thing (though can recognise it in hindsight - I just used to think that BIBBH was particularly matter of fact and forthright!)

KateandtheGirls · 13/01/2005 15:54

Having not had too much MN contact with JF I had no idea that her legal advice wasn't quite kosher, and never saw any of the comments like the w*nk one, so when people started doubting her I was surprised and tried to give her the benefit of the doubt. (Although I do think soapbox's comment wasn't really out of line - everyone was questioning how much she had made up, why not that?) It turns out that PPH, Coddy, Aloha et al were right. Well done guys!

Marina · 13/01/2005 15:56

As someone who has suffered a stillbirth the fact that someone else might have lied about the death of their child makes me very sad. I just don't understand why someone might want to pretend their child had died, or misrepresent the real facts concerning the death of a child.

KateandtheGirls · 13/01/2005 16:01

It wouldn't surprise me, as someone else has mentioned, that she really did suffer that horrendous loss and that is why she has lost the plot a little bit.

pixiefish · 13/01/2005 16:01

marina. she may not have lied about that though- as soapbox asked though it's hard to know truth from fiction when we've already had some lies.

Marina · 13/01/2005 16:02

Yes, I am trying very hard to see it from that perspective as that is a very probable scenario. Very odd to be hoping that part of the story is true IYSWIM.

KateandtheGirls · 13/01/2005 16:03

It would be an absolutely terrible thing to make up, if she did.

SoupDragon · 13/01/2005 16:05

Did anyone else think her posts about her bereavement were, er, rather too well written and lyrical?

KateandtheGirls · 13/01/2005 16:06

To be honest, I never read that thread, so I don't know.

flashingnose · 13/01/2005 16:07

I'm sorry, have just read this thread from the start and it reminds me of thhe summing up at the end of Scooby Doo .

Aloha = Freddie
PPH = Daphne
Coddy = Velma
Ladymuck = Shaggy
Soapbox = Scooby (sorry)

spacedonkey · 13/01/2005 16:07

I'm sure we all doubt the veracity of all JF's posts now. We'll never know if it was true or not so I can't see much point in debating it. All very weird.

Tinker · 13/01/2005 16:08

SD - was just looking for them but am afraid, cynical old me, never thought they rang true in the first place. Just looked like an obvious attention seeking ploy to me since it appeared soon after question marks started around its identity. They, like his/her whole style, were too contrived.

rickman · 13/01/2005 16:08

Message withdrawn

Tinker · 13/01/2005 16:09

snap rickman

Frieda · 13/01/2005 16:09

Now all we need is one of them to pull of JF's rubbery mask and unveil the truth....

lowcalCOD · 13/01/2005 16:09

what was the PR thread?

rickman · 13/01/2005 16:10

Message withdrawn