THE LAUNDRY

EXCLUSIVE to mccannfiles.com

By Dr Martin Roberts
06 June 2011


THE LAUNDRY

Speaking via the Times (5 August, 2007) to the great unwashed, Kate McCann said:

"I was desperately hoping that Madeleine would be back before the cat got washed. In the end Cuddle Cat smelt of suntan lotion and everything. I forgot what colour it was. It was special to Madeleine, she took it to bed every night. If she was upset or tired she had Cuddle Cat. It was special to her so it's special to me."

According to Madeleine's Godfather, Jon Corner, traces of Madeleine herself would have been included among the 'everything' that had impregnated Cuddle Cat with its distinctive odour. He told the Sunday Times on September 9, 2007) "The Cuddle Cat was reeking with Madeleine's DNA. That easily explains why DNA has been found in the hire car and on clothing that Kate bought after Madeleine disappeared."

Just a few days later and Kate reveals, via the Sunday Mirror this time (13 September, 2007) that she 'washed the Cuddle Cat five days after Madeleine went missing saying it was smeared with sand and sun cream.'

Has anyone ever wondered why the soft toy that was clean enough to have accompanied Madeleine to bed on the evening of May 3, should have been allowed out sunbathing immediately after her disappearance? And with whom? Or was that another escapade that lacked adult supervision? Cuddle Cat couldn't have gone to the beach with the McCanns, as they were busy moving apartments, being interviewed in turn by Police and the media, or out jogging. Even though Kate was strangely drawn to visit Lagos Marina, where there are boats and lots of water (but no sand), Cuddle Cat was already washed by then.

'Gerry's sister Philomena said it was cleaned again two months ago because it was filthy after being carried around.'

That would have been sometime in July, presumably, and coincidentally, shortly before the arrival in Portugal of the specialist dog team annexed to the investigation at the suggestion of British expert Mark Harrison. Still, I don't suppose the fact that the McCanns were warned about the imminent arrival of the dogs had anything to do with Cuddle Cat's personal hygiene, any more than on a previous occasion, when foresight might conceivably have played a part. Interviewed for the BBC's Panorama, Jon Corner said:

"Well this is the bizarre thing Richard because the police said to Kate and Gerry: "Yeah, we're going to be coming along, we want to do some forensics." And Kate and Gerry were massively optimistic about this. You've got to remember if your daughter is missing and the police phone you and say: "We want to do some forensics, that's a straw that you hang onto. That's a moment for optimism."

That statement following close behind this one:

"They took most of their clothing, they were taking even the wet clothes out of the washing machine. I was aware that the cuddlecat was boxed up and we were asked to leave the villa."

Gives new meaning to the phrase 'wash and go', doesn't it?

What it must be like to be so fastidious? Bringing us bang up to date with her book and follow-up interviews, Kate, who couldn't bear to answer the questions put to her by Portuguese police, has since conjured up a few of her own. Among the questions she asks herself is this one:

'I didn't think of it at the time but the day Madeleine disappeared I noticed what I thought was a tea stain on her Disney pyjama top,' she says. 'I washed it without thinking but looking back, the children hadn't drunk any tea that day and I can't remember her mentioning that she'd spilt anything.'

Yes, this is intriguing. Sufficiently so as to compare it with a relevant excerpt from Kate's statement to police on 6 September, 2007:

'She noticed a stain, supposedly of tea, on Madeleine's pyjama top, which she washed a little later that same morning. She hung it out to dry on a small stand, and it was dry by the afternoon. Madeleine sometimes drank tea; nevertheless the stain did not appear during breakfast, maybe it happened another day, as Madeleine did not have tea the previous night and the stain was dry.'

According to this testimonial version of events, a dry stain was noticed during breakfast on the morning of May 3 which must have occurred more than twelve hours earlier because Madeleine did not drink tea the night before. The pyjama top was washed that same morning. Now let's look again at 'the question Kate asks herself.'

'The day Madeleine disappeared I noticed what I thought was a tea stain on her Disney pyjama top...' (No mention of breakfast. No mention of Madeleine's wearing the pyjamas at the time).

'I washed it without thinking but looking back, the children hadn't drunk any tea that day and I can't remember her mentioning that she'd spilt anything.'

The children hadn't drunk any tea that day. Albeit in hindsight, Kate, in utilising the past tense, is describing something she noticed, not at the start of the day but at its conclusion. How could she have known, during breakfast, that the children would not go on to drink tea later in the day? Had she been describing a breakfast incident, she might have said something along the lines of 'the children were not drinking tea at the time (I noticed the stain).' And if Madeleine had felt the need to mention that she had spilt something, it could only have been with reference to an incident a day or so old; further back in time even than 'Mummy why didn't you come when (Sean and Amelie, Sean and I, we, the neighbour's cat) were crying?' Children that age live in the present. If Madeleine didn't comment on a breakfast spillage there and then she would not have said anything about its having happened before she'd gone to bed.

Practically speaking there are two occasions during any one day when Kate McCann would most likely have noticed a conspicuous stain on her eldest daughter's pyjama top: first thing in the morning and last thing in the evening, i.e., when the child would need to be changed either into or out of the pyjamas in question. Four years ago she told police of a morning discovery, followed by a prompt washing and wearing again that same evening (these pyjamas were abducted, remember). Now, however, with breakfast no longer a factor (the children 'hadn't drunk any tea that day,' not 'that morning' or 'with their cornflakes'), the washing as a conditioned reflex must have happened later on. If the stain was not in fact noticed in the morning, then it would not have been seen until the evening. And the washing that followed would have resulted in very wet pyjamas, with no time left in which to dry them for immediate re-use.

It is worth remembering that the idea of Madeleine's having been abducted whilst wearing a pair of Disney 'Eeyore' pyjamas is due to the McCanns entirely. There is no confirmation of this from either inside or outside their circle of acquaintance. David Payne was sure he saw all three children, but unsure whether they were dressed in pyjamas, pink or otherwise. Matthew Oldfield saw nothing. Jane Tanner's recollection was prompted by Fiona Payne, who mentioned what she had heard Kate McCann describe, not what she herself had seen. And the Smiths saw a child-in-arms dressed in a top with long sleeves.

There's no such thing as a free lunch, nor a free spin at the Launderette it seems.

As Kate has recently explained to Woman magazine:

"Even when there is only a couple of thousand pounds in the fund, it seems like a lot of money to me.

"But when the accountant told us last year that we only had enough to cover six more months of investigations, we organised three fund-raisers."

In fairness, Kate did tell a regional TV news reporter not so long ago that one of her roles as a fund director was 'income generation.' But when, throughout the four years of its existence, has the fund dwindled to just a couple of thousand pounds? Not so as you'd notice from the accounts it hasn't. And no, we are not being treated here to a fatalist premonition, or some other expression of Kate's anxiety for the future. In simple language that would have called for an 'if' not a 'when' in relation to the downturn in funds, followed by a future conditional 'would seem' (like a lot of money), given a circumstance yet to be encountered. But the 'when' here signifies 'whenever.' And, far from being either a one-off or conditional experience, it is an ongoing and continuous one, albeit possibly sporadic.

Look again at the sentence and ask yourself what manner of short-term cash-flow issue might result in the fund containing no more than a couple of thousand pounds. With the Bank of England base rate at less than half of one per cent, even lending a large sum of money on the open market is hardly worth the effort. Bear in mind also that this has to do with a current and not a historical situation.

"Even when there is only a couple of thousand pounds in the fund, it seems like a lot of money to me."

Keep talking Kate. You're doing a grand job.

http://www.mccannfiles.com/id232.html

Kate had to make up Madeleines now famous last day as M didnt exist on 3/5/2007 explains why nothing makes any sense M's real last day could of been earlier towards the start of their stay in Portugal

Yep, laundry, whether or not from money, might become very important in this case.

Why did the ambassador prevent PJ from stopping the laundry? Does British civil services include protection of household chores?

lj wrote:Why did the ambassador prevent PJ from stopping the laundry?

Would like to learn more about that - anyone? - links? - thanks

It's in Dr. Amaral's book. I don't have a page number.

Thanks lj - have not yet read it yet !

It's a pity the search function does not work well for me. It happened I think the saturday after the disappearance. The argument of his excellency was a kKate type argument "what would people think". All paraphrasing of course. If I find it I'll post the link.