A brief history of the CMOMM Forum: a collection of activists and investigators
Compiled by a Forum member, 3 May 2018
CMOMM came into existence on 25 November 2009 with 8 founder members.
Today it is a giant forum with over 8,400 members.
Apart from its great size, CMOMM has two special attributes.
It is a forum for investigators. This is not a place to air just any old opinion on what happened to Madeleine McCann. It has always been a place where serious investigators, some better known, others who prefer to do their work quietly in the background. Investigators who are not shy of robust debate, but who throw out weakly-supported arguments and adopt those which have good and reliable evidence to support them.
It is a forum for activists. That is, people who are not content just to sit at a keyboard contributing to a forum, valuable though that may be in itself, but who reach out into the world with public letters, petitions, books and videos.
First, a list of the better-known investigators and activists who are or have been members here, and who post here and contribute and post in their own names (in alphabetical order), and their main achievements:
Tony Bennett - campaigner
Set up Madeleine Foundation
Wrote ’60 Reasons’ (2008)
Wrote ‘Madeleine McCann Vol. 1’
Wrote many original research articles
Initiated petitions
Interviewed for TV and radio
Richard Hall - film-maker
(Joined 2014)
Made five long documentaries on Madeleine McCann
His films have had an estimated 20-million-plus views on YouTube
Presents information about Madeleine McCann on his tours
Jill Havern - CMOMM Forum owner
Wrote several letters to Prime Ministers and Met Police Commissioners
‘PeterMac’ - former Police Superintendent
Produced a comprehensive 28-chapter FREE e-book covering most aspects of the evidence in the case
Conducted a huge amount of original research
Led the CMOMM investigation into the date of the so-called ‘Last Photo’
Has sent copies of his e-book and much other evidence directly to Operation Grange and others, including journalists
Lizzy Taylor/ ‘HideHo’ - researcher and video-maker
Producer of 280 YouTube videos (by ‘HideHo4), universally acknowledged to be meticulously researched
Her videos on YouTube have also attracted a total of 20 million or more views.
Over the years these four have compared notes with each other and with many others both on CMOMM and elsewhere. There is a great deal of agreement between all four on what really happened to Madeleine McCann.
A group of CMOMM members also formed a small research group called the Madeleine McCann Research Group (MMRG).
A DIARY OF ACTIVISM BY CMOMM MEMBERS
Some dates are approximate. With sincere apologies to anyone whose activism is not recorded in this list (tell us if something is missing and we will gladly add it to the list!), here is the CMOMM ‘Diary of Activism’:
2007
Nov 15 Tony Bennett attempts to bring private prosecution against the McCanns in Leicestershire & Rutland Magistrates Court for neglect – rejected by the court on the grounds that the court was not sure it had jurisdiction
2008
Jill Havern sets up NHS Abuse of Power blog to highlight the Madeleine McCann case
Jill Havern later sets up the ‘Gonçalo Amaral - The Truth of the Lie’ blog’
25 Jan Madeleine Foundation formed
7 Aug Madeleine Foundation website went live
7 Dec ‘60 Reasons’ by Tony Bennett published
7 Dec Madeleine Foundation publishes a proposed ‘Madeleine’s Law’ recommending the law be changed to make it a crime to leave children under 12 on their own.
2009
Jan Tony Bennett interviewed by James Whale, Talk Sport, Radio Europe, BBC Radio 5 Live and several other stations
Jan Madeleine Foundation petition in support of ‘Madeleine’s Law’ – received reply from the Prime Minister
Jan 7 Tony Bennett writes submission to Parliamentary Committee on Press Standards and Libel and is invited to attend the hearing on 10 March
Feb & Mar With the help of public donations, the Madeleine Foundation’s ’60 Reasons’ booklet is mailed out to all 650 Members of Parliament, dozens of members of the House of Lords, and dozens of editors, journalists and other people of note: 40 MPs reply
March Madeleine Foundation produces 4-page ‘10 Reasons’ leaflet
Mar 10 Tony Bennett and other members of the Madeleine Foundation attend Parliamentary Committee on Press Standards and Libel
Jul 13 Madeleine Foundation Petition calling for an inquiry into police conduct and government involvement in the McCann case – and Madeleine Foundation letter to Prime Minister, Gordon Brown in support of the petition
Aug 1 First Madeleine Foundation 1-day Conference held in Harlow, Essex
Aug 14 ‘10 Reasons’ leaflet distributed in Leicestershire towns and villages, including Rothley
Aug 16 Front page coverage in the Sunday Express: ‘The McCanns’ Stalker’
Sep 2 Lizzy Taylor publishes ‘McCanns on Oprah Winfrey’ show on YouTube – over 1.1 million views to date
Oct 3 Madeleine Foundation Public Meeting, Cardiff
Nov 14 Madeleine Foundation Public Meeting at The Friar Penketh, Warrington
Nov 25 Tony Bennett signs High Court undertakings not to libel the McCanns. ’60 reasons’ banned and withdrawn from sale
2010
Jan 9-12 Madeleine Foundation Chairman Grenville Green and his son Stephen visit Portugal, attend the first hearing of McCanns v Gonçalo Amaral, meet with Gonçalo Amaral and present him with a small gift from England
Feb 5 Madeleine Foundation published ‘Madeleine McCann Case Files: Volume 1
Feb 27/28 Two-day Madeleine Foundation Conference in Nuthall Village Hall, Nottingham; 25 attend including a BBC reporter, Simon Hare
Mar 12 Madeleine Foundation open letter to Home Secretary, Alan Johnson re: Secret meetings about a Review of the Madeleine McCann case
Mar 20 Madeleine Foundation submits FOI Act request to the Home Office about a review or re-investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann
May 2 Madeleine Foundation open letter to Clarence Mitchell re: Jon Corner's video and the Make-Up photo
May 3 Madeleine Foundation letter to Jim Gamble re: FOI Act questions and CEOP’s relationship with the McCanns
Jun 19 & 20 Two day public meeting of the Madeleine Foundation – Bristol
Jul 9 Madeleine Foundation submits FOI Act questions re Theresa May’s meeting with the McCanns
Jul 13 Madeleine Foundation letter to the Home Office
Jul 13 Madeleine Foundation FOI Act questions re: CEOP
Jul 17 Madeleine Foundation ‘Gonçalo Amaral Awareness Day’ - leaflets handed out in Bristol – filmed by ‘BBC Inside Out team
Oct 2 Petition for a full public enquiry into Madeleine McCann's disappearance handed in to 10 Downing Street by four members of the Madeleine Foundation
Nov 22 BBC - Inside Out 10-minute documentary on the Madeleine Foundation aired
2011
May 9 Two Madeleine Foundation members visit Arthur Cowley’s cottage on Halkyn Mountain, the alleged headquarters of ALPHAIG – to expose this bogus company created by Brian Kennedy and his friends
Jul 4 Madeleine Foundation letter to Theresa May, the Home Secretary, about her proposed re-investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann
Jul 23 Madeleine Foundation FOI Act question - Who told Clarence Mitchell, at 'briefings', that this was 'a stranger abduction' - and when?
Oct 2 Two members of Madeleine Foundation visit Operation Grange and speak to the Deputy Investigator DI Tim Dobson and hand in a dossier featuring research on the dodgy and dishonest McCann Team private investigators
Nov 27 Lizzy Taylor publishes ‘Who Died in the McCanns’ apartment? – over 292,000 views on YouTube so far
2012
Feb 6 CMOMM member Criminal Profiler Pat Brown visits Tony Bennett in the UK en route to Praia da Luz to meet Gonçalo Amaral and PeterMac to investigate the crime scene around apartment 5a and conduct a search for Madeleine.
Jun 22 Lizzy Taylor publishes Gonçalo Amaral’s ‘Truth of the Lie’ film on YouTube – over 1.1 million have viewed this so far
2013
Feb 21 Tony Bennett sentenced to 3 months in prison, suspended, for breaking the injunction he signed in 2009
2014
‘PeterMac’ conducts original research on the ‘Last Photo’ and leads a research team which concludes that the Last Photo could only have been taken on Sunday 29 April, not Thursday 3 May
7 Aug Richard Hall publishes 1st Madeleine McCann documentary: ‘True Story of Madeleine McCann’
2 Sep Tony Bennett FOI Act requests re Madeleine McCann – (1) Contacts between the Met Police and BBC Crimewatch: Request refused as 'vexatious' and (2) request to the Home Office about the selective leaking to the media of a confidential report by Jim Gamble, former head of CEOP
5 Sep Tony Bennett FOI Act request to Leicestershire Constabulary about the 'co-ordination group' set up under the chairmanship of their Head of Corporate Communications
19 Sep Tony Bennett FOI Act requests - Met Police – (1) questions about the 'Smithman' sighting (2) Meetings with authors Anthony Summers & Robbyn Swan
2015
Jill Havern sets up CMOMM Facebook Group – now has thousands of members
Apr 14 Richard Hall publishes 2nd Madeleine McCann documentary: ‘The Phantoms’
Jul 6 Lizzy Taylor publishes ‘Kate McCann's 'Killer Look' - Rare Footage’ on YouTube - over 450,000 views so far
Dec 12 Tony Bennett - Three new FOI Act requests re Operation Grange
2016
Feb 20 Richard Hall publishes 3rd Madeleine McCann documentary: ‘When Madeleine Died?’
Mar 15 Madeleine Foundation Open letter to Bates Wells Braithwaite & HaysMacIntyre re Francisco Marco
Apr 29 Tony Bennett attends 10 Downing Street to present petition calling for the Home Office to order a report on Operation Grange. The petition attracted 3,111 signatures
Sep 26 Jill Havern writes open letter to new Prime Minister Theresa May demanding a proper investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance
Nov 25 Richard Hall publishes 4th Madeleine McCann documentary : Interview with Peter Hyatt Statement Analyst – “Embedded Confessions”
‘PeterMac’ publishes free e-book with comprehensive analysis of numerous key evidential aspects of the Madeleine McCann case
2017
Mar 21 Jill Havern writes to Huddersfield University Ethics Committee and the British Psychological Society about an absurd, flawed article about alleged ‘McCann trolls’ by John Synnott and Dr Maria Ioannout (The researchers had made false claims about cadaver dogs)
May 20 Unnamed CMOMM member writes long, detailed letter to the Prime Minister, submitting many facts and unanswered questions, and asking for a proper investigation
Jun 12 Jill Havern writes letters to the Prime Minister and to the new Head of the Met Police, Cressida Dick, demanding a proper investigation into Madeleine McCann’s disappearance
Apr 7 Richard Hall publishes 5th Madeleine McCann documentary: ‘Madeleine: Why the Cover-Up?’
2018
Mar 3 Tony Bennett - FOI Act request – Met Police - Regarding the Madeleine McCann investigation being carried out by Operation Grange
Mar 13 MMRG sent 20-page letter in Portuguese sent to the Portuguese Attorney-General giving a dossier of evidence showing that Madeleine probably died on Sunday 29 April 2007
Mar 28 Reply from Portuguese Attorney-General saying she has passed our evidence to the Attorney-General based in Faro
Apr 24 Tony Bennett - New Home Office FOI Act request: (A) Procedures for approving grants to Operation Grange (B) Costs to Portugal of helping Operation Grange
With special thanks to all CMoMM members past and present, without whom a lot of this wouldn't have been possible.
A brief history of the CMOMM Forum: a collection of activists and investigators
Jill Havern | Published on the 12.05.18 8:25 | 1221 Views
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