Lost Honour Christopher Jefferies

[We3KingyofOblomovAre]

Is there another thread?
I searched.
God, I could barely watch, it was too awful. my heart bled for the poor man.

CJ has courted publicity. I read he was given something like £200K for the slur on his character- maybe I need to check that out but it sickens me to think he has.

Did he court publicity at the time of his arrest and subsequent monstering by the tabloid press? From memory makemineadouble, he didn't. As for being 'given' £200k, that's miles from the case. He sued various news outlets to get apologies and damages for their lies and the distress they caused to him and his family/friends. Calling what he endured a slur is a gross understatement.

Quite simply, Mr Jeffries was vilified for looking different from 'the norm' and not conforming to what the right wing press believe a middle aged man should look and act like, and he deserves every penny of the damages he fought for.

Yes, I do feel for Ms Yeates' family, but she wasn't the one tried by tabloid.

I haven't watched the second episode yet, but I thought the first one was brilliantly done. Jason Watkins was superb, and the scene of the actual arrest was incredibly powerful and moving.

There is a very good interview with Christopher Jeffries in the Radio Times, and he comes over as a lovely, genuinely caring man, who is still regarded with the highest affection by many of his former pupils. To suggest that the money he was awarded in damages by the courts is 'profiting' is crass beyond belief.

I thought this highlighted the disgusting lynch mob mentality of the press very effectively. The fact that the tragic murder of Jo Yeates triggered these events should not mean that this behaviour is ignored. Remember, the press often hand out this treatment to victims of crime as well, and they need to be held to account for it.

What really concerns me is that the Press are so uncomfortable about their part in this that they are once again attacking Jefferies. And you are colluding in it.

Are they? Exactly how and what? You must have read something I haven't.

CJ has not had his life ruined. I understand he used to teach at Clifton College but was retired. I now understand he has another teaching job.

That to me does not equate being ruined especially as he has been awarded damages - I read in the region of £200K- in 2011.

You cannot equate events like Hillsborough and this- they are totally different. Hillsborough centred around a cover up of incompetence and deception of public servants; this was a genuine error and 'trial by media'. The Moors murders focused on a hunt for the perpetrators for decades.
Not the same.

It was unfortunate for Jeffries. He was awarded damages. The delay did not stop the actual murderer being found. I think he'd have been more decent to have let sleeping dogs lie and not have this raked up now at this time of year, for the family.

This programme was not the brainchild of CJ, although he obviously co-operated to some extent. In fact it was initiated and written by the man who wrote the films The Queen, and Frost/Nixon. He wanted to highlight the appalling way that the British press judged this man, and found him guilty, with no other evidence than his weird hairstyle and monkish demeanour.

The assumption by the press (and police) that CJ was guilty did impede and delay the investigation, and the fact that he has emerged from an horrific ordeal with such dignity does not mean that what happened to him is in anyway acceptable. The press continue to treat people in this way, and many of them are much more vulnerable than Christopher Jeffries.

I have a lot if empathy.
How rude for you to insinuate I'm not. My friends consider me to be one of the most empathetic people they know.

For yeates family and also Jefferies:
I have said I have sympathy for both many times.

You are being very personal and rude to me.

I have 2 children.
I lived in Clifton for 2 years.

My male colleague was accused of rape factitiously and the bail conditions, solicitors etc, almost led him to a nervous breakdown .

I was falsely accused of something , and it was the most horrific experience and I will never be the same again.

Mine was minuscule compared to Jefferies.

Your comment that his life hasn't been ruined , as if what he experienced., wasn't completely destroying, shows dismissiveness on your part that I find hard to understand.

I suspect the police encouraged the media to monster Christopher Jefferies. I don't know for sure, but it's happened in other cases. I'm not excusing the reporters for going along with it btw.

I don't think it's too strong a word for someone who's been treated like that to say their life was ruined. It's a terrible experience.

And so what about the amount of damages? Money is the only language publishers understand.

Sorry if I havn't read all the posts.

Dh and I watched this, I found it very upsetting and I have to say it made the police look like a bunch of w*nkers. Being a mum of a very quirky ( some people may say odd ) dd who has Aspergers it sickens me to think that because she's she's a bit different, may dress differently and talks like a professor that she could be accused of something she didn't do. The police had nothing at all to link Christopher with the murder of Jo but because he looked odd and a bit different they jumped on him, media tore him apart, spread lies and destroyed his reputation. The way he handled it was amazing, most people would have crumbled to pieces but he remained calm at all times. I hope the police have learnt from their mistakes but I doubt it very much.

Most people on both this thread and the other thread are unanimous:
Sad, skilfully done, Watkins superb, about a very important issue:
Media and practically 'being guilty until proven innocent '.

CJ was treated appallingly. You can recognise that and still feel very sad for Jo's family. The two are not mutually exclusive

I plan on watching this on catch up.

I'm finding some of the comments on this thread extraordinary.

Why should Christopher Jeffries let sleeping dogs lie. It was his life that was negatively impacted forever.
The fact that others have suffered more is not the point. It's ridiculous to even suggest that.

Bizarre .

It was unfortunate for Jeffries Makemineadouble are you for real?? Good fucking grief

Not sure how his life was ruined when he has been totally exonerated, has new work and money as damages.

I still think the timing of it all was poor. Her family will never of course forget but showing this at this time of the year was just crass imo.

We3 it's hardly being rude to accuse someone of not having much empathy based on what they have posted. You do need to get over yourself if comments like that annoy you so much.

Celtic I never said he wasn't treated appallingly. What I have said is that the film was imo in poor taste considering the family's grief, and the scheduling of the drama.

the film didnt go into a great deal of detail about the appalling treatment by the media, but most of us remember it.
absolutely disgusting.

Does anyone remember Colin Stagg who was wrongly accused of the murder of Rachel Nickell on Wimbledon Common? Although he was never charged the Police and Press were convinced it was him, and it was some years later that the real culprit was discovered.

It's not just appalling treatment by the media. There were a lot of Miss Marples about - including on MN. Some of them are in the police too, which is even more worrying, because you'd think they of all people would be able to keep an open mind about eccentric characters.

I'm going to stick my hands up - I am a journalist and I have been in that kind of pack on that kind of story. I can see how that happened. I'm not excusing it and he deserves every penny. I guess he'd probably rather have remained in obscurity and not have the money though.

I said earlier that hitting them in the wallet is the only language these people understand. It is. But publishers and broadcasters aren't the only people for whom money seems to be everything.

If it was £200,000, so what? If I had 20-50 people on my doorstep, pushing and shoving me, shouting abuse to get a reaction for the camera, cosying up to my neighbours and former pupils, offering them money for rumours and printing outrageous slurs against me with the seeming acceptance of the police, I'd want it too.

And in the midst of this there was no escape for him and no guarantee that he would ever have his reputation restored. That's one definition of ruin.

He has got his life back, but he's still being blamed.

Other people haven't. Colin Stagg, for instance. The police just rounded up the local weirdo and set the press on him. He didn't kill Rachel Nickell. That's been proved and their bungling put others at risk.

Just like in the case of Millie Dowler when Surrey Police's concentration on her father, negative off-the-record briefings about him and Millie to the media and general laziness and bungling left her murderer, Levi Bellfield, free to attack one girl and kill another.

I guarantee there'll be another story sooner or later about how outrageous Stagg is being by asking the police to account for ruining his life.

x-posts eddiemairswife.

He was treated outrageously and it still goes on. I don't think anyone - police or press - have ever been called to account.

I've recorded it so haven't watched as yet but I imagine I'll feel so guilty. I was convinced it was him. I was explaining to ds1 (17) what it was about and had to admit that 'everyone' assumed he was guilty as he was 'odd'. I do feel thoroughly ashamed of myself.

Makemineadouble1
"Not sure how his life was ruined when he has been totally exonerated, has new work and money as damages.

I still think the timing of it all was poor. Her family will never of course forget but showing this at this time of the year was just crass imo.

We3 it's hardly being rude to accuse someone of not having much empathy based on what they have posted. You do need to get over yourself if comments like that annoy you so much."

It is ironic though - for you post that and accuse someone else of not having much empathy.

I doubt very much that the tv company invited him to chose when the programme was scheduled. You seem to be happy to blame him for decision probably outside of his control.

How can the money and new work make things all better? The damage has been done, he was a quite man who kept himself to himself and now everyone knows who his is and have read all the trash in the papers, no amount of money will ever make up for what he has been through.

hellkitty please speak for yourself. Not everyone thought he was guilty. I certainly did not. I remember at the time saying that I 'hope in a way he is guilty as if he was innocent his life was ruined'

My heart went out to him at the time. And yes it was an excellent series. The message to me was not about the tragic loss of Jo Yeats but of the press and media scandal.

I've just watched the first episode on catch up.

I can see how it happened.

I think it's valuable.

Anyone know if the TV footage and newspapers were real from the time or mocked up for the programme?

I remember the threads at the time very clearly
All the 'he looks odd, he did it' comments.
People are so fucking thick some times.
There are threads on here along the same 'just trust your instincts hun' lines all the time.

I've only watched the first episode but think it's very accurate - the Sky footage in particular.

He was odd and difficult and got people's backs up - even his friends. I can believe that he was cunty to the postman and the police officers.

I think Christopher Jefferies is a very difficult man to like.

I remember watching him being talked to on TV and thinking: 'WTF! You superior cunt.'

I can see why people took against him. But being a cunt is not an excuse for libelling someone, however much we hate them.