28 April 2007 Long Day

by roy rovers 04.03.12 20:27

The Mccanns arrived at Faro airport at approximately 12.30pm on Saturday 28 April 2007. Working backwards I make it that they must have set the alarm that morning for 5 am as follows:

5.00 am Get up, get showered, get the kids up, make breakfast, wash up get ready to go.

6.00 am Leave home in Rothley for East Midlands airport.

6.30 am Arrive airport car park with adequate time to park up, get bus to terminal, check in and go through security etc for an international flight.

8.30 am Flight departs - 3 hour flight.

11.30am / 12.30 pm (local time) Arrive in Faro.

My question is what state must the parents have been in? They must have been exhausted especially if they had been working up to the Friday and if they had been up late washing, ironing, packing etc. They might not have got to bed until after midnight. In a state of exhaustion could either of them have lashed out around kiddies bedtime that night?

by **HiDeHo** 05.03.12 0:42

Nothing abnormal IMO, but while on the subject, there are several discrepancies about their arrival at the Ocean Club.

Gerry claims they stayed in the apartment until about 4.45 when they went (for the first time) into the complex, and they took it in turn to look after the children in the playground as well as go for their meeting around 5pm.

Fiona claims they got together on a balcony once everyone had arrived.

Kate claims that Madeleine wanted her to go into the pool, which she says they both did.

Considering it was a little over an hour before the meeting, they all came up with different activities.

Memory? Contrived statements to fit with the 'details' of the rest of the week?

by roy rovers 05.03.12 9:29

Don't the facts point to something happening this early in the holiday which would explain the phone activity (why was Jane Tanner using her mobile at 4am on 29 April?), the movements of Murat and the lack of any holiday photographs of Maddie.

by russiandoll 05.03.12 12:13

that 4 am phone call does be some questions....was it incoming or outgoing? strange whether to or from the UK to call at that time unless important.
The 30th is a day which Kate more or less dismisses in her book, hardly mentioned. And it is that afternoon the twins keep their normal routine in creche until tea time approx 5.30, but Madeleine is signed in and out after 15 minutes, spending two hours who knows where and who with. A very important day imo .

by roy rovers 04.04.12 23:53

When the true history of the Mccann affair comes to be written one aspect for in depth analysis will be the way that the Tapas 7 stood together and none of them broke rank. In my view it took from early on in the holiday until the night of the supposed abduction to get them all on board. I can't believe they all agreed to the abduction performance at once. They would have been prevailed upon one by one - the Mccann's career's were on the line, think of the twins etc etc. Once they let it happen they were in too deep to get out. They must have expected that it would soon blow over and could never have imagined the international attention to the case that followed. Is there another case where so many have kept so quiet for so long?

by pennylane 05.04.12 9:13

roy rovers wrote:When the true history of the Mccann affair comes to be written one aspect for in depth analysis will be the way that the Tapas 7 stood together and none of them broke rank. In my view it took from early on in the holiday until the night of the supposed abduction to get them all on board. I can't believe they all agreed to the abduction performance at once. They would have been prevailed upon one by one - the Mccann's career's were on the line, think of the twins etc etc. Once they let it happen they were in too deep to get out. They must have expected that it would soon blow over and could never have imagined the international attention to the case that followed. Is there another case where so many have kept so quiet for so long?

Good morning roy rovers,

I do not subscribe to death earlier than 2nd/3rd May 2007. I think it was indeed Maddie that Mrs Fenn heard crying on the 1st May, and that the following night Maddie was given something to insure she slept; perhaps ROB supplied a drug and following her demise he feared for his important career at the Southwest Peninsula Deanery, prompting JT's ridiculous last minute alibi for GM after he ran into the Smiths.

I believe the rest of the tapasniks would have spat out the McCanns in a heart beat, if they had been separated up and questioned with intensity early on. As it was they were all treated "with tweezers," and this pretty much set the scene henceforth. As the
story went global, there was no individual incentive to bail out and face the music [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] and with each million pounds that flowed into the fund, and each lie that was told to cover another, the dye was caste.

All last minute planning, and one blunder after another as the façade unfolded (jmho)

by **tigger** 05.04.12 10:40

Hello and welcome roy rogers!
Clearly you've been reading a lot!

I tend to favour the very early days for Maddie's disappearance, it's the problem with the creche mainly and the difference in character that the nanny gives to the child in her charge.
The other reason is the hasty return in the night of the 30th April of Murat - arriving on the 1st of May. Imo he was a major player. Perhaps he was the Lee Harvey Oswald in this case. Not intended to be, but eventually became the patsy. Made quite a bit of money out of it too in the end.
Then there is the tell tale pattern of the telephone calls.

Local time in Portugal is the same as UK incidentally. Makes things easier.

You wrote re the Tapas 7:
They must have expected that it would soon blow over and could never have imagined the international attention to the case that followed.

That's exactly what I think, I very much doubt that any of them were in on the real story.

by roy rovers 10.04.12 0:09

Thanks PennyLane and Tigger

I have been a reader of this site for a long time but never felt I had anything to add to the impressive research carried out by the many active members. My simple point is that the 'mystery' only seems to me to make any sense and then makes a lot of sense if a date much earlier than the 3 May is considered for the disappearance. Much of the rest is the testimony of the Tapas 9 and some other sources whose recollection of who / where / when might be less than complete (cleaners, waiters even nannies etc).

I also sense that we are heading towards the denouement now - probably this year once the SY review and the Tony Bennett, Goncalo Amaral and Pat Brown trials run their course. It's not going to be pretty.

by roy rovers 20.11.13 1:30

roy rovers wrote:Don't the facts point to something happening this early in the holiday which would explain the phone activity (why was Jane Tanner using her mobile at 4am on 29 April?), the movements of Murat and the lack of any holiday photographs of Maddie.

Murat reminds me of The Wolf - the clean up guy in Pulp Fiction. Brought over to supply a flat with a fridge as opposed to cleaning up a car.

The Wolf: Jimmie, lead the way. Boys, get to work.
Vincent: A please would be nice.
The Wolf: Come again?
Vincent: I said a please would be nice.
The Wolf: Get it straight buster - I'm not here to say please, I'm here to tell you what to do and if self-preservation is an instinct you possess you'd better fucking do it and do it quick. I'm here to help - if my help's not appreciated then lotsa luck, gentlemen.
Jules: No, Mr. Wolf, it ain't like that, your help is definitely appreciated.
Vincent: I don't mean any disrespect, I just don't like people barking orders at me.
The Wolf: If I'm curt with you it's because time is a factor. I think fast, I talk fast and I need you guys to act fast if you wanna get out of this. So, pretty please... with sugar on top. Clean the fucking car.