Re: Why Operation Grange can only be a whitewash

by aiyoyo 17.03.14 12:43

ultimaThule wrote:
aiyoyo wrote:
notlongnow wrote:Would still love to know what Redwood is saying to cause the expressions of them.

Anyone living with a SECRET would be scared shitless sitting next to the Police especially Police Chief investigating your case.
Living in constant fear the Police are working on apprehending you is terrifying enough. Imagine having to sit next to Police Chief on National TV not knowing what's waiting in the corner for you, what the Police Chief is going to say or do ?

I don't believe they were kept in the loops. They are as much in the dark like you and me. I suspect they have more than a nagging suspicion the Police are onto them - bound to be !
Don't tell two seemingly intelligent doctors are so deluded they cannot discern that evidence speaks louder than words and it is only a question of time before the Police crack the case.

The police don't actually have to 'crack' the case as such, aiyoyo, so much as provide sufficient grounds for the prosecution to substantiate whatever charges are brought and enable them to build a case which will be put to the jury.

Like yourself, I don't believe the McCanns have been kept in the loop by AR and his team and I see them more as having been played like fish. When the fish in question are ego driven, bucket loads of flattery laced with faux deference and liberally applied with seemingly genuine genial bonhomie can be effective at keeping them on ice until such time as the conditions are right to set about the business of filleting them.

With regard to the three visits made by senior CPS officers to their opposite numbers in Portugal last year, as I have said elsewhere these can only be for the purpose of discussing matters of jurisdiction should it prove to be the case that the alleged pepetrators of serious crimes against Madeleine McCann are British nationals, although of course the respective findings of both police forces will have also been subject to debate.

The police have to crack it relatively even if only sufficiently for prosecution purpose, and that is what I meant.
There is no jury trial in Portugal.

by Cristobell 17.03.14 12:50

I suspect they cracked it a long, long time ago, buts its evidence they need. As Gerry likes to remind everyone on a regular basis 'there is no evidence'. I must admit, were I a detective I would view that as a taunt. I even think there is a distinct possibility that the obnoxious characters of the main protagonists went some way towards the re-opening of the investigation.

by Mirage 17.03.14 13:04

j.rob wrote:
Ladyinred wrote:
PeterMac wrote:As we saw in this picture . . .
" />

Captions are not needed for the McCanns.

Was the e-fit placed there deliberately?

A potent image.
Well, it would appear that the joke - at last - is on the McMuppets. The expressions on their faces are priceless. GM's face is like an angry shield - hard, belligerent, contemptuous. As well it might be with a blown up e-fit of a major suspect - someone remarkably similar to himself - strategically placed so that the viewer's eye can comfortably compare the two faces. And the e-fit sandwiched suggestively between GM and the police chief investigating the crime.

KM has the look of a condemned woman awaiting the gallows.

What is fascinating is to compare this picture with the video-footage of the McCanns cracking up at the press conference when the age-progressed picture of Madeleine was published. At the press conference Gerry had a suppressed smirk on his face which eventually broke out into an uncontrolled grin. And Kate, too, suppressed what looked like a smirk at around the same time.

In other words, at the press conference when the age-progressed picture of Madeleine was published the pair quite literally struggled to keep a straight face.

Contrast that with the looks above. GM looks like he wants to punch Redwood on the nose - he is furious. As well he might be.

The yoke's on him, as you might say

I have to admit this photo is the ONLY reason I nurture a modicum of hope. Your gallows analogy is very apt, j.rob. In fact that e-fit could be concealing a guillotine blade (just stick your head under here for a moment sir). All in all a photograph to treasure. Gone is the self-satisfied smirk from GM. Gone is the pieta face of the other article. Stripped bare and looking about 92.

I also loved Chatelaine's housekeeper's reactions. I can just imagine it. So bally obvious isn't it? But to hear it in that insouciant French way with that particular Gallic shrug that bespeaks why are you asking me the bleedin' obvious? Priceless.

One remaining query in this crafted vignette - is that the grim reaper lurking in the shadows below the e-fit? Or is it an officer drafting their arrest warrant? He looks busy anyway.

by j.rob 17.03.14 13:06

Thankfully, for some, religion can be a source of comfort as well as a golden rule for ethics.

'Do unto others as you would have them do to you. (Luke 6: 31)

And, when the yoke gets too heavy to bear:

Matthew 11:28-30
New International Version (NIV)
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

by **Tony Bennett** 17.03.14 13:13

Mirage wrote:
One remaining query in this crafted vignette - is that the grim reaper lurking in the shadows below the e-fit? Or is it an officer drafting their arrest warrant? He looks busy anyway.

Yes - busy - but probably just completing his expenses claim for his latest trip to Faro

by Mirage 17.03.14 13:18

Tony Bennett wrote:
Mirage wrote:
One remaining query in this crafted vignette - is that the grim reaper lurking in the shadows below the e-fit? Or is it an officer drafting their arrest warrant? He looks busy anyway.
Yes - busy - but probably just completing his expenses claim for his latest trip to Faro

Just when I was getting heady with excitement, Tony. Could he be doing both? big grin

by j.rob 17.03.14 13:29

The grim reaper! Yes, I too was wondering how the the figure hunched under the blown-up e-fit (guillotine even!) fitted into the vignette. There is something biblical in this scene - Redwood strategically placed to the forefront appearing more lifelike and luminous than the Mcs who, for once, are not in control or centre stage. KM is positively ashen.

And Redwood, sitting sideways on - his face a picture of earnestness as he makes his appeal while the Mcs look on in horror with their hands adjoined as though hand-cuffed together. He could almost be the archangel in this little cameo.

by j.rob 17.03.14 13:31

Tony Bennett wrote:
Mirage wrote:
One remaining query in this crafted vignette - is that the grim reaper lurking in the shadows below the e-fit? Or is it an officer drafting their arrest warrant? He looks busy anyway.
Yes - busy - but probably just completing his expenses claim for his latest trip to Faro

by Guest 17.03.14 13:41

j.rob wrote:The grim reaper! Yes, I too was wondering how the the figure hunched under the blown-up e-fit (guillotine even!) fitted into the vignette. There is something biblical in this scene - Redwood strategically placed to the forefront appearing more lifelike and luminous than the Mcs who, for once, are not in control or centre stage. KM is positively ashen.

And Redwood, sitting sideways on - his face a picture of earnestness as he makes his appeal while the Mcs look on in horror with their hands adjoined as though hand-cuffed together. He could almost be the archangel in this little cameo.

When I first saw this image posted by PeterMac I gasped. It really is a powerful one for me, but I can't describe why adequately. Perhaps it is the composition, the context, the expressions of the faces, body language. It could become a defining image in the future, I believe.

by Guest 17.03.14 14:01

Mirage wrote:
PeterMac wrote:As we saw in this picture . . .
" />

Captions are not needed for the McCanns.

Was the e-fit placed there deliberately?

A potent image.

Mirage wrote:
[...] I also loved Chatelaine's housekeeper's reactions. I can just imagine it. So bally obvious isn't it? But to hear it in that insouciant French way with that particular Gallic shrug that bespeaks why are you asking me the bleedin' obvious? Priceless. [...]
***
Châtelaine wrote:
I found it also quite pregnant, that she didn't have any emotional reaction to AR's "poker-face" ... so, I gather, he must be quite good at that. She's only seen this one picture and for the first time, so she doesn't know he doesn't blink winkwink

ETA something went wrong with quotes ... sorry

by ultimaThule 17.03.14 14:04

Being one who is completely repulsed by images of the McCanns, this is a shot I could gaze at for hours. big grin

by Mirage 17.03.14 14:27

ultimaThule wrote:
Being one who is completely repulsed by images of the McCanns, this is a shot I could gaze at for hours.

I'm thinking of having it framed. They look as if they are about to spontaneously combust.

by **Tony Bennett** 17.03.14 14:30

j.rob wrote:The grim reaper! Yes, I too was wondering how the the figure hunched under the blown-up e-fit (guillotine even!) fitted into the vignette. There is something Biblical in this scene - Redwood strategically placed to the forefront appearing more lifelike and luminous than the Mcs who, for once, are not in control or centre stage. KM is positively ashen.

I have given this considerable thought.

I was trying to recollect a Biblical scene of someone speaking, someone, as it were 'more lifelike and luminous' as you put it - and a husband-and-wife team looking ashen-faced and shaken as he speaks.

I think I have found a Biblical account that closely matches the above scene.

Redwood is Elijah

Gerry McCann is King Ahab

and

Kate McCann is his wife, Jezebel.

Ahab was the very wicked King of Israel, and Jezebel his wicked wife.

The greedy pair wanted to enlarge their palace by acquiring the profitable vineyard next door, run by hard-working, honest, God-fearing businessman Naboth.

When he refused, they killled him - and, as the Bible records, the dogs came upon his dead body and licked his blood.

The account of Elijah speaking to Ahab and Jezebel is to be found in 1 Kings 21, where we read that Elijah said:

"Hast thou killed, and also taken possession [of Naboth's vineyard]? Thus saith the Lord, in the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine. I have found thee, because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the Lord. Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity. [And] the Lord said: 'Thou hast provoked me to anger and made Israel to sin. The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel'."

[ 1 Kings 21 vv 17-27 ]

The rather graphic fulfilment of this particular prophecy comes later, in 2 Kings 9, where we read that King Jehu came across Jezebel hiding in her palace, her face 'painted' and with a tiara on her head. At the upstairs window were 'two or three eunuchs'.

King Jehu said: "Throw her down". So they threw her down: and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses, and he trode her under foot. When he was come inside [the palace], he said: "Go, see now this cursed woman, and bury her". And they went to bury her, but they found no more of her than the scull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands. And King Jehu said: "And the carcase of Jezebel shall be as dung upon the face of the field in the portion of Jezreel..."

[ 2 Kings 9 vv 27-37 ]

by **PeterMac** 17.03.14 14:40

Brilliant.
Even the blood and cadaverine dog gets a mention.
So they have been reliable for more than three thousand years . . .

by ultimaThule 17.03.14 15:02

@PeterMac

On being told of the prophecy that she would be eaten by dogs by the wall of Jezreel, I can almost hear Jezebel saying 'What will my parents think?" big grin

by noddy100 17.03.14 15:59

Love it
Redwood saying This is the bloke we are after not the one these 2 want us to look for :)

by Guest 17.03.14 16:32

Tony Bennett wrote:

I think I have found a Biblical account that closely matches the above scene.

Redwood is Elijah

Gerry McCann is King Ahab

and

Kate McCann is his wife, Jezebel.

Lucky for you, I think, that Jezebel is no longer around to sue for this terrible slur on her character.

by aiyoyo 17.03.14 19:04

j.rob wrote:The grim reaper! Yes, I too was wondering how the the figure hunched under the blown-up e-fit (guillotine even!) fitted into the vignette. There is something biblical in this scene - Redwood strategically placed to the forefront appearing more lifelike and luminous than the Mcs who, for once, are not in control or centre stage. KM is positively ashen.

Sitting next to Police is not the same as purpose-select sofa interviews when only controlled questions can be asked and when they can spin any which way they like. Sitting next to Sr Detective on a TV appeal is a completely different altogether. No wonder she's visibly ashen. She probably had on nappy to avoid wet floor embarrassment.

And Redwood, sitting sideways on - his face a picture of earnestness as he makes his appeal while the Mcs look on in horror with their hands adjoined as though hand-cuffed together. He could almost be the archangel in this little cameo.

by HelenMeg 17.03.14 22:13

aiyoyo wrote:
j.rob wrote:The grim reaper! Yes, I too was wondering how the the figure hunched under the blown-up e-fit (guillotine even!) fitted into the vignette. There is something biblical in this scene - Redwood strategically placed to the forefront appearing more lifelike and luminous than the Mcs who, for once, are not in control or centre stage. KM is positively ashen.

Sitting next to Police is not the same as purpose-select sofa interviews when only controlled questions can be asked and when they can spin any which way they like. Sitting next to Sr Detective on a TV appeal is a completely different altogether. No wonder she's visibly ashen. She probably had on nappy to avoid wet floor embarrassment.

And Redwood, sitting sideways on - his face a picture of earnestness as he makes his appeal while the Mcs look on in horror with their hands adjoined as though hand-cuffed together. He could almost be the archangel in this little cameo.

Its beautiful, isn't it.
I could love that little detective, just for this

by HelenMeg 17.03.14 22:14

Its got to have been deliberate, hasn't it?
If it was, and it seems too much to hope for, hats off to him

by saltnpepper 17.03.14 22:35

The picture in the background was of the young Maddie

watch from 1:50:27 as the camera comes in for a close up

by canada12 17.03.14 22:52

How easy it is to Photoshop :-)

by ultimaThule 18.03.14 0:45

saltnpepper wrote:The picture in the background was of the young Maddie

watch from 1:50:27 as the camera comes in for a close up

At 1.33.43 on Gerry is not at all happy with Kate...

I wonder how Russell O'Brien feels about being depicted by a dead ringer for Kate's personal unqualified 'psychologist', Mr Alan (tell 'em what they want to hear) Pike? sarcastic

by Mirage 18.03.14 1:08

ultimaThule wrote:
saltnpepper wrote:The picture in the background was of the young Maddie

watch from 1:50:27 as the camera comes in for a close up
At 1.33.43 on Gerry is not at all happy with Kate...

I wonder how Russell O'Brien feels about being depicted by a dead ringer for Kate's personal unqualified 'psychologist', Mr Alan (tell 'em what they want to hear) Pike?

See what you mean. In the good old days he would have pinched her and nestled into her neck with a shuddup.. Halcyon days when they had it all their own way and wrote the scripts. There's a split second at 1.52.53 when old Kate's eyes flash pure terror. Blink and you'll miss it. That's why Andy has trained himself not to blink, he doesn't want to miss those deer in the headlights moments

Now I'm going against my religion here, but I will concede that the gruesome twosome look all in. KM looks by turn exhausted, terrified and belligerent - narcissist's rage, if I'm not mistaken. If looks could kill, old Andy would be dead. Perhaps, just perhaps, Andy may do the nation proud yet. It's more hope than judgement, but I've never seen them look so out of control. It's just eating them alive to sit there and not be directing operations.

To add to the agony Gerry must have known the cry was going up all over Germany - Er ist ein Doppelzimmer für die Menschen im Studio.

by ultimaThule 18.03.14 2:20

The years have not been kind to Kate, have they? Still, there must be a few million stashed under the marital mattress and a bit of nip/tuck at the London Clinic will restore her former glory. Unless, of course, she's decided to embrace her inner cougar and presupposing the happy pair are not obliged to up their criminal lawyers' retainers, or throw money at silks who don't don their wigs for less than £20,000 a day. .

The various 'crimewatch' editions have been very cleverly done and I particularly appreciated the aide de memoir segment in the German version where we saw the bereft couple's first appearance on the world stage, their 'Rome Awaits' moment in front of the Pope, the pair emerging separately from the Portuguese police station where they'd been made arguidos, and the shots of them climbing into the Scenic for the 'wacky races' drive to Faro airport where they're seen disappearing into the cabin of an easyJet flight, before being shown joined at the hip in an English countryside setting.

Andy's 'revelation' moment has sure trumped Gerry's tunnel vision. Another member recently expressed the hope that visiting this forum provides a select number of its permanent guests with a little light relief, but I suspect they've had more than a few belly laughs while going about their lawful business and can recount numerous anecdotes which would have us in sitches of the non-surgical variety.

I'm looking forward to AR's account of his time at 'the Yard' and if he should be in need of a typist to put his best seller on paper, I'm his gal - discretion guaranteed. big grin