McCanns in GMTV chat, 22 April 2010

McCanns in GMTV chat Daily Mirror 22/04/2010 MADELEINE Madeleine McCann's parents will be interviewed by Lorraine Kelly as the third anniversary of her disappearance nears. Kate and Gerry go on the GMTV couch on Tuesday, to be seen by viewers the next day - their only UK TV appearance before the May 3 anniversary. Madeleine, then aged three, vanished on holiday in Portugal in 2007. "Lorraine's been very supportive of the family," said a source. "This is a thank you and a reminder that she's still missing." Lorraine Kelly Twitter 22 April 2010 - 12:00pm

Lorraine Kelly: Comment, 24 April 2010

Lorraine Kelly: Comment The Sun (appears in paper edition) 24 April 2010 It's hard to believe it is almost three years since Madeleine McCann vanished and impossible to imagine the agony her parents still endure. Next week, I will be talking to Kate and Gerry about life without their daughter. Both of them are still hopeful of finding her and are more determined than ever to keep Madeleine's name in the public eye. This couple have not only had to deal with the agony of Madeleine's disappearance every single minute of every day, but they have also been subjected to vicious and ill-informed abuse. They have tried to do everything in their power to find their child, but they have had the kind of vitriol heaped on their heads usually reserved for hardcore politicians or dodgy politicians. Shamefully, they have even been accused of murdering their own child. Of course they shouldn't have left Madeleine and the twins alone, but to suggest that they deserved to have their daughter abducted is disgraceful. Three years down the line, a little girl is still missing and all her parents want is to have her back. Surely they deserve our support and our deepest sympathy.

Daily Star Sunday (paper edition): 'Maddie Three Years On', 25 April 2010

Maddie Three Years On, 25 April 2010

Maddie Three Years On Daily Star Sunday (appears in paper edition) World Exclusive: Changing face of missing girl By Mike Parker in L.A. 25 April 2010 (Thanks to Mercedes for scan) This is the little girl the whole world longs to see alive and well. The image is of Madeleine McCann, just eight days away from the third anniversary of her disappearance on a family holiday in the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz. It was created specially for the Daily Star Sunday by forensic computer age-progression expert Jovey Mae Hayes employing the same techniques she has used in kidnapping and missing persons cases for police across America. Maddie's appearance will have changed significantly, according to Jovey Mae, since she vanished on May 3, 2007, just days before her fourth birthday. For a start, she will be somewhere between four and seven inches taller than parents Kate and Gerry remember her. And Maddie's face will be longer than that of the cute, chubby-cheeked infant seen on millions of "Missing" posters. "She has high cheekbones, just like her mother," said Jovey Mae, joint owner of ageprogression.org in Michigan. "These will appear to be even more pronounced than at the time of her disappearance. Angelic "Girls tend not to shed the last of their facial 'puppy fat' until well into their teens but her face will look noticeably longer, as well as her nose. "Consequently, those lovely wide, angelic eyes we all remember from those sad posters will seem to be slightly smaller because, while the rest of the face grows, the eyes don't." Despite numerous false leads and several possible sightings of Maddie since her disappearance, her distraught parents have never given up hope that one day she will be returned to their family home in Rothley, Leics. Jovey Mae said: "I would urge people to focus strongly on Maddie's new facial features in the image, rather than her hair, which I have kept in the same longish style and the same colour." Jovey Mae has also "re-dressed" Maddie. She said: "She would probably be wearing jeans most days and maybe lace-up deck or tennis shoes. "It's almost a 'uniform' for many kids these days but nothing that would make her stand out in a crowd."

Sunday Express (paper edition): Maddie aged 7?, 25 April 2010

McCanns beg police to start again in the search for Madeleine, 28 April 2010

McCanns beg police to start again in the search for Madeleine Daily Mail By ANDY NOLAN Last updated at 12:01 AM on 28th April 2010 The parents of Madeleine McCann have accused British police of 'giving up' on their missing daughter. Kate and Gerry McCann spoke out just days before the third anniversary of Maddie's disappearance, urging investigators to go back to the start and review the case. The McCanns, both 41, fear their own £2million search - funded by public donations received since Maddie vanished from their Algarve holiday apartment - has stalled. Disappointed: Gerry and Kate McCann believe police should be doing more to find their daughter They claim this is due to the failure of both Portuguese and UK police to investigate leads unearthed by their private investigators. In a pre-recorded GMTV interview due to be broadcast today, Mr McCann said: 'It's not right that an innocent, vulnerable British citizen is essentially given up on. And I don't think it's right that, as parents, that we have to drive the search.' He added: 'We need to have a proper review of all the information --that's how we will move the investigation forward.' Mrs McCann, a GP who gave up work to concentrate on the search for Madeleine, said: 'We do this in medicine. You know, if there is a case that you don't seem to be getting the diagnosis, somebody will come in and review it. They'll go back to square one... and that's where you find out what else needs to be done and it will help point you in the right direction.' Leicestershire Police has carried out its own inquiries as has the taxpayer-funded Child Exploitation and On-Line Protection Centre. But neither is actively seeking the little girl. The three-year saga has already cost UK taxpayers nearly £500,000. The couple, from Rothley, Leicestershire, told GMTV's Lorraine Kelly it was 'incredibly frustrating' that police in Portugal and the UK are not doing more to find Maddie, who was three when she disappeared from the holiday complex at Praia da Luz on the evening of May 3, 2007. The McCanns were criticised for leaving the girl and their twins Sean and Amelie, then two, alone in the apartment while they dined with friends at a tapas restaurant 40 yards away. In the latest interview, Mr McCann, a consultant cardiologist, said that if they could go back, they would not leave Maddie alone.

Mummy was a doctor but now her job is to find Madeleine, 28 April 2010

Mummy was a doctor but now her job is to find Madeleine The Sun By LORRAINE KELLY Published: Today (28 April 2010) KATE and Gerry McCann are making plans for their daughter's seventh birthday - but the little girl will not be opening her presents or blowing out the candles on her cake. Madeleine has been missing for almost three years and, for her heartbroken parents, what should be a celebration is yet another ordeal to get through somehow. They have been able to build some sort of normal life for themselves and have explained as much as possible to their five-year-old twins, Sean and Amelie. But everything comes back to the fact that their eldest child isn't there any more. I met Kate and Gerry yesterday, a week before the third anniversary of the fateful day Madeleine disappeared from their holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal - May 3, 2007 - and a fortnight before her birthday on May 12th. Kate told me: "Her birthday is actually much more difficult than May 3rd. "It is a day when we should be celebrating Madeleine - and celebrating WITH Madeleine." Kate is bone thin and looks very fragile and, while Gerry might appear to be coping well on the outside, you can clearly see the pain in his eyes. They both have a haunted, strained look but somehow they manage to get through the day. The twins, young as they are, know that things have changed but also that they are part of a family that has a world of well-wishers. Kate, a GP, said that one of Sean's playmates had asked her "Are you a doctor?" She recalled: "Sean just came in and said, 'Mummy was a doctor but her job now is to find Madeleine'. He was straight in there. So they understand that we have got a lot of support." Gerry, 41, and Kate, 42, draw comfort from that. But even while enjoying a family outing and being able to laugh with the twins, Madeleine's disappearance casts a shadow. Kate said: "We had a lovely day last week and it was really sunny and you could smell the grass being cut and I thought, oh, this is really nice. And then it just kind of gets you. "Madeleine is still not here but we do have periods of normality. In fact, I would say it's just changed, in that it is a different kind of normality now. "You still have to do the cooking and washing, we've got Sean and Amelie and we have lots of time with them. And we go on trips, they go swimming." As well as having to put on a brave face for their children, they both find themselves feeling almost guilty for any moments of snatched happiness. As Kate put it: "Suddenly you realise it's actually tinged." Gerry has gone back to work, but that was tough to start with. He said: "It was a little bit awkward at the beginning but at that time I found it much easier when I am mentally active, both from a campaign point of view and workwise as well. "To be honest, most people were just really glad to see me. When I went back to work, quite often Madeleine would be there on the front pages of newspapers. So it was a bit awkward but it's not been a problem." The twins are now old enough to know what happened to their big sister. But Kate and Gerry have had to be careful about being honest with them about Madeleine, not frightening them. Initially, when the twins asked where Madeleine was, Kate would say she was lost. But as they grew older they started to ask more questions. Kate said: "I think it was last year Amelie said to me, 'Has Madeleine run away?' "And she kept asking me in a public place so it was a bit tricky at first, and she said, 'Because it's not nice to run away'. "That really upset me because I thought I don't want her to think that Madeleine is at fault. So, probably about the third time she asked when we were at home we just explained that someone had taken Madeleine. "But we tried to make them understand in as gentle a way as possible. It's a bit like stealing, you know. That's how they understand it. So they know someone has taken her and they know it is wrong." It's hard to imagine how tough it must have been to tell two little children that nightmares can happen and kids can be abducted from their beds. Gerry said: "They believe it was a man that took her. It was a naughty man and we need to try and find them. So part of what they say is that mummy is working to try and help find Madeleine." Kate added: "They constantly spot things like a car sticker or a luggage tag or a wrist band and they point it out and say, 'Look, they are helping us too'." From the moment Madeleine disappeared, Kate and Gerry, who both appeared on my GMTV sofa today to talk about their daughter, have moved heaven and earth to try to find her. Their campaign, which has included a high profile visit to the Pope, a TV and poster campaign and appearances on the likes of the Oprah Winfrey show, certainly got the message across and Madeleine's name was known worldwide. But there has been a dark side, too. Kate and Gerry found themselves accused of being neglectful parents and even complicit in Madeleine's disappearance. They were vilified for leaving her in their holiday apartment while they dined nearby with friends. They were even criticised for "coping too well" because they didn't break down in front of the cameras, as if this meant their grief wasn't genuine. Anyone who sees them in private knows this to be horribly unfair and completely untrue. Their grief is deep, raw and almost impossible to imagine. Gerry told me: "You get criticised whatever you do from some quarter. What you need to do is make decisions for the right reason and do it with the best intentions. "Ultimately, we make our own decisions. But I think probably, more than anything, I'd say if we could turn back the clock and change what happened then obviously we wouldn't have done it. "What I would say is people have got to put themselves in our position and ask what would you do if it was your daughter?" Those who continue to condemn the couple surely accept that they have paid a truly horrendous price. Under Portuguese law, Kate and Gerry found themselves as "arguidos" which translates roughly as suspects. So not only did they have to cope with their child being missing, they had to endure being cross-examined by Portuguese police and having mud thrown at them. Kate, in particular, found the vitriol tough to handle, especially in the early months after Madeleine's disappearance. She said: "I wasn't expecting it because all I could see was our daughter has been taken and she is being subjected to something terrifying. But it is a small minority now." In their ongoing campaign, Kate and Gerry would dearly love to see a full government review of the case. Gerry said: "It is not right that an innocent, vulnerable British citizen is, essentially, given up on. We don't think it is right that, as parents, we have to drive the search. "Of course, we will but not everyone has the same resources that we have had." They have also produced a pack for Brits travelling abroad. It contains posters and car stickers with images of Madeleine as she was when she went missing and how she might look now. Gerry said: "It is very much about keeping her image out there. Who knows who will end up seeing her. But if you don't have an image of her out there it is less likely." I had to ask them whether they really thought that Madeleine was still alive. Kate said: "Certainly, in my heart, I feel she is out there. "There is nothing to say she isn't. So we carry on working and thinking like that." Kate still has a clear image of her daughter in her head but it is the image of a child frozen in time at four years old - or, as she describes it, "Madeleine at four years minus nine days". She said: "I can still hear her voice and we have video of her. Every so many months we sit down and watch that." Gerry said: "A lot of this campaign stuff, it's almost like the abstract Madeleine. Our own video, it's ours. Sometimes you have got to embrace the grief. It's almost like you have to let that out." For a pack and more information, go to findmadeleine.com

Hope amid the sadness, as we approach the third anniversary of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, 28 April 2010

Hope amid the sadness, as we approach the third anniversary of the disappearance of Madeleine McCann Liverpool Echo Apr 28 2010 ON these pages is a poignant article written by Kate McCann, ahead of the third anniversary of the disappearance of her daughter, Madeleine. Liverpool-born Kate talks about the support she and her family continue to receive in her home city, which provides them with enormous encouragement. She also talks about the amazing maturity of her twins, Sean and Amelie, and reveals how "they bring us that vital bit of joy, laughter and warmth that makes you want to get out of bed in the morning." And, crucially, Kate explains how she and her husband, Gerry, believe recent developments have improved their chances of finding their daughter. There is, inevitably, much sadness in her words – but, also, much hope. The world's media, again inevitably, will return to the story of missing Madeleine in the coming days, but it is something, we should remember, that the McCanns and their families live with every minute of every day. And each day, leaving no stone unturned, they are working hard to bring about that longed-for breakthrough. Every parent in Kate and Gerry's position would surely be doing the same. As they say on findmadeleine.com: "There is absolutely nothing to suggest that Madeleine has been harmed. Madeleine is still missing and someone needs to be looking for her. She is very young and vulnerable and needs our help. We love her dearly and miss her beyond words." So much has been said, so much has been written and so much has seemed to have happened since Thursday May 3, 2007. But, in essence, nothing has happened – Madeleine disappeared that night and she hasn't been seen since. That, despite the thousands of headlines that have followed, is the story – a story which, we all pray, will have a happy ending. Kate McCann exclusive: My Liverpool and why we're closer to finding Madeleine Liverpool Echo By Paddy Shennan Apr 28 2010 EVERY time I'm back home at my mum and dad's and I head off for a run, it fills me with a great sense of warmth and hope to see the green and yellow 'Madeleine rosettes' tied to the railings along Allerton Road. It makes me very proud of my Liverpool roots. Liverpool has been a bedrock of support for all our family. We frequently receive positive comments, reassuring hand squeezes and pats on the back with general hopeful encouragement from passers-by when we're here. My mum and dad have had so many comforting hugs from friendly strangers and I know my dad's had a fair few pints bought for him over the past three years! It makes us feel that we are not alone in this relentless battle. And that helps! It's incredibly painful to think that three years have gone by since we last saw Madeleine. Just the thought of it makes me panic. Strangely though, it sometimes feels like it all happened yesterday, but then reading my journals reminds me very clearly, of just how much has happened and how much we've done during this time. It’s suddenly very apparent how three years have passed! Although our lives are very different now (I often refer to my life pre-May 2007 as 'my previous life'), we have reached a new kind of normality. Gerry works full-time at the hospital and concentrates on 'Madeleine-work' in the evening when the children have gone to sleep. I have not returned to medical work but spend my 'working day' dealing with the campaign to find Madeleine. This set up also gives me the flexibility to support Sean and Amelie as much as I can. As for the twins – they are just fantastic. They are enjoying school and are incredibly happy children – and really funny! They play together constantly, a little like having your best friend with you all the time. I honestly don't know where we'd be without them. They bring us that vital bit of joy, laughter and warmth that makes you want to get out of bed in the morning. Their understanding of what has happened and what we are all trying to achieve is quite remarkable. Madeleine remains a hugely significant person in their life. She appears in their role-play, in their conversations and in their prayers at night. I've heard them on many occasions talking to other children in the park saying "our big sister's six-and-a-half… blah, blah, blah". It makes me very proud of them and even more determined to bring their big sister back home. Madeleine is certainly not forgotten in Sean and Amelie's life. It's difficult to talk of 'success' when we still haven't found Madeleine but this year has certainly enhanced our chances of doing so. The court case in Portugal over the past ten months, which led to the injunction against Goncalo Amaral’s book and DVD, has been a significant step forward. The damage caused in Portugal, by this book and 'documentary', to our efforts to find Madeleine may not have been apparent in the UK but we believe it has been highly detrimental. Needless to say, it has caused us much added pain and frustration over the past few years. The injunction has therefore brought us great relief, as we can hopefully start moving forward with the search, in the places were it really matters. At least now, all our efforts stand a chance of being successful. Another significant project during the last year was the fundraiser we held in January. It was a lot of work (for an amateur like me!) but in both financial terms and in terms of awareness of missing children and re-energising our search for Madeleine, we probably achieved more than we'd hoped. The work to find Madeleine continues on a daily basis. Every day both the investigation and the campaign go on, hand in hand. Apart from the two main projects of the last year, we have recruited help from universities, the travel industry and churches. We have targeted specific areas of the world to help further our search. And of course, there is still a lot of mail to read and reply to. There certainly hasn't been a day when we've thought, "I've got nothing to do today". There is much that can still be done to find Madeleine. There has been copious amounts of information received and gathered at various locations. Despite three years having passed, this information has still not been reviewed together systematically – many pieces of the jigsaw, not yet joined up. We believe that by doing this, we will be much closer to finding out what has happened to Madeleine. At the very least, we would be much clearer in knowing what still needs to be done to find her. It's very hard to feel that the key piece of information, which would unravel this whole nightmare and bring Madeleine home, could be sitting on someone's desk. We will continue to request a review of all the information held and hope that in the coming months, the governments and law enforcement agencies will work together to achieve this. In the meantime, we will continue with our work, knowing that there's somebody out there who knows what's happened to Madeleine and where she is. And of course, it will not just be the person who took Madeleine that could help to give us this breakthrough…their mother, father, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, cousin, grandmother, grandfather, partner, colleague, neighbour or friend. Everybody is known to someone. Everybody confides in someone. All we need to do is reach one of these people or hope that one day, they will find the courage and compassion to come forward and tell us. As long a period as three years sounds, it's incredibly small when compared to a lifetime. It's those many, many years ahead with Madeleine that we long for and aim towards. The effort of perseverance pales into insignificance compared to a reward so precious. Madeleine is a real little girl and she is still missing. We will not be going away and will never stop looking. We will press on with the same commitment and tenacity, for as long as it takes. A very special 'thank you' to everybody in Liverpool who has helped us and continues to support us in the search for our little Madeleine.

The McCanns: GMTV interview, 28 April 2010

The McCanns: GMTV interview GMTV 28 April 2010 Missing Madeleine's parents accuse the British Government of 'giving up on their daughter' as their search enters its third year Transcript Thanks to Sasha from Little Morsals for transcript LK = Lorraine Kelly KM = Kate McCann GM = Gerry McCann LK: They join me now, three years. I can’t believe it’s been three years. It’s extraordinary isn’t it? KM: I know, it’s incredible really; it just doesn’t feel like three years to me. Sure. GM: Mmmm. Last year in particular has gone particularly quickly. LK: I know...I just wondered if you in anyway can have any sort of normal life three years on. Can you...does it...it...it must always, it’s just always there isn’t it, all in the forefront of your mind. KM: I mean it is always there and obviously Madeleine’s in our life every day, but we do have, you know, periods of normality, in fact I’d say we just .. it’s just change and that’s a different kind of normality now, I mean we still  have...Gerry obviously works full time erm you know, we still have to do the cooking and washing, we’ve got Sean and Amelie and we have lots of time with them, we go on trips, they go swimming LK So you do...you’re able to do this normal family things, you know, you have gone back to work as as you said, but there ...there’s almost this thing ...sometimes do you feel almost guilty about enjoying yourselves sometimes, you know, or laughing or having fun with the twins ... you ...is..is..do you sometimes feel like that? KM: Yeah definitely, I think erm, sometimes you can be having a really good time, and... suddenly you realise it’s actually tinged and it will suddenly stop yer and you know, we had a lovely day last week and erm...you know it was really sunny and we can smell the grass and it’s been cut and I thought, oh it’s really nice and then it just kinda...kinda ...gets yer know...Madeleine’s still not here. LK (talking to GM) And you’ve gone back to work, was that difficult for you? Did you sense people’s awkwardness around you or did that dissipate quite quickly? GM:  Ye...er...it was a little bit awkward at the beginning  but at that time I think...I found it much easier when I’m mentally active when I’m doing things, both from a campaign point of view and work wise as well, erm...and...it was actually difficult when we were arguido and wasn’t so much happening, er..it’s...you felt you almost had your hands tied behind your back somewhat, so it was definitely the right decision for me to go back I went back part-time and then erm, built up and filled time and to be honest most people were just really glad to see me and most of the patients initially have been quite reserved or just left messages with er the staff.  But it was awkward in those early months when I went back and I was doing ward rounds and quite often here would be Madeleine on the front page of the newspapers or ourselves and various other things erm, so that was a little bit awkward but generally it’s not been a problem. LK: Because sometimes people don’t really know what to say to you, you know, there’s that, that sensible {?} they’re not quite sure ... you know, they want to say how sorry they are or they’re thinking of you but they don’t quite know how to broach the subject, it’s quite difficult it’s... KM: I think it is difficult, I think it, you know, it depends on the person really, erm, some people feel comfortable coming and asking yer how it’s going, other people are just kinda tap you on the arm and say thinking of you and other people feel they shouldn’t invade your privacy bu... LK: Does it help when people.... KM: It does. I ..I mean, I’ve said all along really, actually makes me feel better when people acknowledge Madeleine essentially ermm... LK: Yeah, that’s true GM: I think it’s very important as well that er  a lot of times people want to skip around it, don’t know to mention it or not and of course we live with this everyday of our life and it’s a huge part of it and er...and...and that even applies to friends and people as well who you know, you haven’t seen for a while erm, and also we spent so much of our  our time outside particularly when the kids are in bed actually thinking about ways how we can improve the search and keep it going. LK: Mmm...Because that’s really what this is all about and the search has to keep going on – What sort of stage is the investigation at or what sort of stage is the campaign at right now? GM: From an investigation point of view erm, I think it’s fairly important to say that from law enforcement they’re not doing anything actively and haven’t been for a long time and that’s incredibly frustrating so we’ve had our small team working away in the background and erm, in terms of new leads I think we’ve put out most of the important information that we had this time last year, we had a very good response and most of those leads have been worked probably er as much as we can with Dave and his team. So at this point what we’re really trying to do is to get the government to review everything and it’s very difficult because a lot of information held in, in with British police there’s a lot in Portugal, it’s not all in one file whereas other information we’ve got we’re happy to make available but there hasn’t been a comprehensive review, there hasn’t been anything about which lines of enquiry er...(unintelligible)... for the investigation and that’s just something we feel is fundamental and should happen and it’s not right that an innocent , you know, vulnerable British citizen is, is essentially given up on, and I don’t think it’s right that as parents that we have to drive the search – Of course we will but yer know, not everyone has had the same resources and support that we’ve had to be able to do that and I think it’s pretty cruel. LK: very frustrating, for, for both of you and another aspect of  it is the kind of criticism that you’ve come in for as well, erm, there’s been a lot of that and that must be very, very difficult to deal with, I mean you’ve got a lot at the start about the fact that you, you left the kids and you’d gone off and had a meal and all of that had happened and then you know, even to this day you know, there are people who are convinced are convinced that you had something to do with it, how on earth do you deal with that? KM: I think, I mean I think it’s changed erm, certainly we don’t get the same level of criticism that we did and even then, to be fair, it was the minority really I think most people even if, you know, they don’t agree with, with, you know, what we did then they wouldn’t feel it right or fair to add to our suffering erm LK: Because it does doesn’t it, it does add to your suffering... KM: Absolutely and particularly in the early weeks and months, you know, I wasn’t expecting it because all I can see, you know, our daughter’s been taken and she’s been subjected to something terrifying and that’s the most important thing so for people to start you know, shouting as us when really we needed to keep the focus on Madeleine ... LK: Of course, absolutely KM: But having said that I mean I think there’s just a small minority now and you know there’s a certain group out there who, this is their job really, is to pick on a vulnerable family and I’m sure after us they’ll move onto another family and... GM: That’s very interesting I think anyone who’s in the public eye for whatever reason gets criticised and early on when we were campaigning er you know, you would say Oh my goodness we’re getting criticised for doing this and doing that and you start to let that influence what you’re doing but then you realise you get criticised for whatever you do from some quarter LK: Yes GM: and what you need to do is make decisions for the right reason and do it with the best intention and really stick to yer guns, take advice but ultimately we make our own decisions but I think probably more than anything I’d say is, you know, after ... if we could turn back the clock and change what happened obviously we wouldn’t have done it, we can’t and what I would  say is you know, people have got to put themselves  into your positions. What would you do if it was your daughter? Afterwards what would you do? {{The following was a bit confusing because Lorraine Kelly kept talking over what Gerry McCann was saying}} LK: You’d move heaven and earth (GM: Yeah so that’s what...)  and you’d do everything you possibly could, everything you possible could (GM: that’s what we’re trying to do ) just what you’re doing of course (GM: as much as possible)  yeah GM...and er, er, trying to er think of ....just constantly ways where we could improve things or, or get additional things done. LK: You did this pack (holds up a holiday pack of Madeleine) that is specifically aimed at people going on holiday anywhere, it doesn’t matter, it doesn’t have to be Portugal it can be absolutely anywhere and in the pack there’s posters people can put up, there’s a stickers, there’s bookmarks, there’s all of this so again this is about you being pro active and you try to do as much as you can. They can get this on your website can’t they? GM: yeah KM: yeah LK: Yeah, so they can get a hold of that and hopefully that’s again just going to keep everything in the public eye, that’s what you want to do, keep her name there GM: It comes...er...a lot of what we’ve done is er, taking advice from the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children in Washington and it’s very much about keeping her image out there, that’s really important Madeleine so there’s an age progression photograph there which was released last year, just other things, car stickers and it’s simple things, who knows who will end up seeing her er, but if you don’t have her image out there then it’s less likely. LK: Yooouuu...er...like I say, is very, very, very, very, difficult for both of you, it’s been absolutely horrendous...you’ve, you’ve stayed at home haven’t you Kate, you’ve stayed at home looking after the twins. How much do the twins know? How much are they aware of because they’re five now KM:  Er, they know quite a lot, we’ve kind of...it’s changed a little bit initially for them they’d say where’s Madeleine, Madeleine’s lost...erm...then as they got older and started to ask more questions then obviously the picture’s unfolded a little bit for them and basically, I think it was last year wasn’t it (glances at Gerry) erm, Amalie said to me you know, has Madeleine run away mummy? And erm, she kept asking me in a public place (LK: Awww) so it was a bit tricky at first, and she said: because it’s not nice to run away. And that, that really upset me because I thought because I didn’t want her to think that Madeleine’s at fault here, so probably (glances at GM) about the third time she asked me, when we were at home rather than in a supermarket, erm, we just explained really that someone had taken Madeleine but we tried to obviously make them understand it in as gentler way as possible so... (LK:  you don’t want to frighten them do you, you don’t want to make them scared) ...so it was a little bit like you know, stealing really, (LK: right) so we said, just because you really want something or you really like something, if it belongs to somebody else you shouldn’t take it, so that’s how they understand it, so that they know somebody’s taken her and they actually, they know it’s wrong you know. LK: Can you still, do you still have a, I mean  three years is a long time, you’ve still got her image in your head, can you still hear her? KM: Yeah, I mean obviously the image we have of is, you know, the Madeleine that we knew, so Madeleine at four days...you know...four years minus nine days, erm (glances at Gerry) and I can still hear her voice and obviously we have video film (LK: of course) of her and you know, every so many months we sit down and we’ll watch that really and ... LK: Oh that must be...en...(unintelligible)... someone’s comfort thing and (unintelligible) very, very difficult to do that. GM: Sean and Amalie like watching the stuff of us and they’ve watched old video’s of us and they’ve put it all together now you know...the temporal sequence of events and they know about, they went to Portugal, they went to bed and Madeleine was taken and just to expand a bit on what Kate says they know, they believe that, you know, it, it was a man that took her and it’s a naughty man and we need to try and find him so it’s part of what they say that mummy’s working er to help find Madeleine KM:  Er Sean said to us his little friend in school, she said, she said: Kate you a doctor? And Sean just came in and said: mummy was a doctor but her doc..er...job now is to find Madeleine, you know, kind of, erm, he was just straight, and er, so they understand what we’re doing and why we’re doing it and they understand that we’ve got a lot of support, you know, they’ll constantly spot things like a car sticker or a luggage tag or a wristband and they’ll point it out and you know, say look they’re helping mum too ....so... LK: Are you convinced she’s still out there somewhere? KM: Certainly, in my heart I feel she’s out there and there’s, there’s...I mean I know there’s nothing to say that she isn’t and so we have to carry on working and thinking like that, I mean logically, you know, I mean, I can’t say, none of us can say for definite other than the people involved, but erm, I know we can’t give up because there’s no evidence to say she’s not so..... LK: that’s what I was going to say to you. Do you think there’ll ever be a time when you say enough is enough, we’ve done all we can,  there’s no more we can do. KM: We can’t. I mean if they haven’t found Madeleine, if we don’t know what’s happened, you haven’t done enough, I mean there’s obviously more that can be done and it might just be time, you know, it might just be, you know, there could be a group of people out there who are sitting with this on their conscien...you know ... with this on their conscience and every time Madeleine is mentioned or every time there’s an image, again it’s just pricking their conscience and it might just be, you know, as I say, a question of time until they come forward, the situation might change and they may then feel comfortable to come forward so...just keep going... GM: As hard as it is there are lots of examples, particularly from the States, of children who have been abducted at a younger age and kept for a long time. I think the key thing is you (shouldn’t that be ‘we’?) don’t know who’s taken her and what the motive is and until we find that person, it’s very hard but, you’ve just gotta keep going and keep working away but more importantly we need to have a proper review of all the information, that’s how we’ll move the investigation forward  and at the end of the day, the person that’s taken Madeleine is still out there they’re er, a potential danger to other children so they need to be brought to justice. KM: We do this, you know, in medicine, you know, if there’s a case you don’t seem to be getting a diagnoses someone will come in and review it, they’ll go back to square one, they’ll go through all the information or the data or the results that you’ve got and work through it and that’s when you find out what else needs to be done and it will help point you in the right direction so ... LK: And its...will be her birthday soon. What will you do that day? KM: I was just explaining to someone before, her birthday is actually a much more difficult day for us than, you know, the 3rd of May. The 3rd of May really is just, it’s another day without Madeleine erm but the 12th is obviously a day when we should be celebrating Madeleine, celebrating with Madeleine erm, I mean, last year we had a little tea party, we had close family and Madeleine’s friends round, erm and I guess we’ll probably do something similar. It’s a little bit different this year because Sean and Amalie are in school but after school we can have a little tea party or something LK: Thank you both for coming in and talking to us. Erm, like, you know, like everyone else I just hope for a happy ending one day. Thank you very much indeed and we’ll be thinking of you. Thank you so much.

Our hearts go out to you Kate, but the truth is it's time to find some peace..., 29 April 2010

Our hearts go out to you Kate, but the truth is it's time to find some peace... Daily Mail By ESTHER RANTZEN Last updated at 8:59 AM on 29th April 2010 Dear Kate, Can it really be only three years since your little daughter Madeleine disappeared? It feels like a century ago when her three-year-old face first began to haunt us. Her angelic expression and solemn eyes engraved themselves on to our hearts; they reached out to us from posters that went up everywhere, from airports to village shops. Even now, the questions remain. Could she still be alive? Worst of all, is she the prisoner of some twisted individual? I know that must be your deepest fear - indeed it doesn't bear thinking about - although of course it must always be at the back of your mind. Over the years we have shared your nightmares. In those early months, as news story followed news story, we pored over the events of that fatal evening she went missing. You must have relived those hours a million times, and so have we. So I hope it doesn't sound too harsh to suggest that three years later, the world has moved on. Not because we have forgotten Maddie, nor because we have lost sympathy with you and your family, but because the pain we felt at the time has begun to numb and heal with time. No doubt that's what motivated you to appear on GMTV yesterday. To remind us. To shake us into caring again. Clearly you are still in agony - perhaps, for you, time has even intensified it. As you and Gerry publicly accuse the police of 'giving up', it is obvious that your agony is caused not just by loss, but by not knowing if your darling girl is dead or alive, safe or suffering. You are still tormented by the fact that nobody can answer your questions, because Maddie has not been found, and may never be found. Let us for a moment face the tragic truth. Maddie may not be alive. How will you feel if one day her body is found? My guess - and it can only be a guess because no one can truly know how you feel - is that after the first terrible impact of shock and grief, you may even feel a small glimmer of relief that at least she is at peace. That is not in any way to diminish your terrible loss. It is simply a human response to your current purgatory. No more guessing; no more false hopes cruelly disappointed. Perhaps the fact of knowing might bring with it the understanding that, at last, you might be able to move on with your lives. For at the moment you are still stuck exactly where you have been for the past three years. As you say yourself: 'As a parent of an abducted child, I can tell you that it is the most painful and agonising experience you could ever imagine. My thoughts of the fear, confusion and loss of love and security that my precious daughter has had to endure are unbearable.' So maybe if you knew the truth, no matter how tragic that truth is, you might find it easier to bear. You are not alone. Parents who lose children have told me how important it is to have something, even a body, to centre their grief on. I remember interviewing Winnie Johnson, mother of Keith Bennett. Keith was one of Ian Brady's child victims, murdered and buried somewhere on the Lancashire moors, the only child victim whose body was never found. Unlike you, Kate, Winnie has known for years that her child is dead. But like you, she is still tormented by not knowing where he is. Keith's murder took place 46 years ago. Yet only a couple of months ago Winnie took a helicopter flight over Saddleworth Moor to search for her boy's body yet again. And to pray for him. She said: 'I know these moors go on for ever, but I know one day we will find my Keith. I will never give up hope. I want him back. I will fight for ever more until I find him and I hope I will find him before I'm dead.' Although Manchester police have called off their search for Keith's body, Winnie is appealing for £20,000 to pay for a special scanner powerful enough to find buried remains. After nearly half a century of uncertainty, she still yearns to find him, to be released from rage and pain, and be enabled to grieve. Make no mistake, that need to mourn a lost child is one of the most powerful emotions a mother can feel. I once made a television programme about still-born babies. At the time, it was the practice to try to pretend the babies had never existed. Fathers were told to go home and redecorate the nursery and give away the baby clothes. Hospitals buried the tiny bodies in unmarked graves. There were no photographs taken, nothing to remind the parents of their loss. Annihilating every trace of the child was considered the kindest way to help a grieving mother cope. But it was terribly wrong. Bereaved parents told me that years later their grief was as fresh as ever; that they had constant dreams and flashbacks of the baby they had lost. So now the practice has changed completely. Doctors and midwives encourage parents to create memorials, books and gardens for still-born babies. Grief, mourning and a carefully created memorial can bring healing. Which brings me to another family in despair. Seventeen years ago, when he was a toddler, James Bulger was brutally murdered by two children, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables. That murder is engraved on our national memory and broke his mother Denise's heart. For 15 of those years she has been unable to leave her home alone. I have visited her there, in the house that had become a shrine to James. All she had were constant reminders of his terrible death, not of his life. 'He was such a positive little boy,' she told me, 'I'd love him to have something positive to celebrate him with.' So I suggested to her that we could create a special memorial to James, a project on Merseyside, her home town, to help children who have been badly bullied. Run by the Red Balloon charity, it could be called James Bulger House. When Denise visited a Red Balloon project with me and saw their fantastic work in giving traumatised children their lives back, she leapt at the idea of a similar project in her son's name. 'I would love my children to have a positive memory of James,' she told me. James Bulger House is about to open now; there are already children on its waiting list. And on what would have been James's 18th birthday, Denise took 18 red balloons to his graveside. Why is this relevant to your own terrible heartache, Kate? Well, what I am suggesting is that you and Gerry need a similarly positive memorial to celebrate Maddie's life, too. Not because I am assuming she is dead, but because when we last met I saw how frail you are, and how unhappy. And no wonder. I know that you and Gerry are constantly with parents of missing children who, like yourselves, are lost in the no man's land between grief and hope. The work has inevitably immersed you in the hideous world of child pornography and sexual exploitation, because that is often the motive of those who abduct children. You say that now you know about 'the unbelievable existence of such a horrifying activity and its vastness in our socalled civilised and "child-loving" society', your eyes have been opened to a terrifying new world. With that nightmare constantly before your eyes, no wonder you accuse the police of 'giving up' on Maddie. Let no one judge you harshly for keeping the flicker of hope alive in your hearts. But alongside your campaign to tighten laws against child pornography, why not also create a Madeleine McCann charity - one that would not simply fund the search for your lost daughter, and others like her, but which would also help children in other distressing situations? It could be medically based - perhaps as Gerry is a consultant cardiologist, it might work for children with heart disease. Or perhaps it could provide respite for families battling with disability - for example, the thousands of children who spend their exhausted lives helping to care for a disabled parent, day in day out. These are only suggestions. You as a GP and Gerry as a consultant must already know many other ways in which you could give practical support to other children, in Maddie's name. And the happiness you create would surely give you both the strength to heal the past, and optimism to face the future. In the meantime, be assured, we have not forgotten Maddie, or you. But we recognise, in your anger, that time has stood still for you. And although we would not wish you to lose your commitment, we would also like to feel that you find comfort in the knowledge that Maddie's name will live on, and will contribute happiness to many other children's lives - wherever she is. Wishing you happiness as ever, Esther

The McCanns on "Las Mañanas de Cuatro", 29 April 2010

The McCanns on "Las Mañanas de Cuatro" Las Mañanas de Cuatro 29 April 2010 Thanks to Mercedes for translation Kate and Gerry McCann have marked the third anniversary of the disappearance of Madeleine with an interview with "Las Mañanas de Cuatro" television in Spain. Concha Garcia Campoy, presenter and director of "Las Mañanas de Cuatro" on Spanish television, spent the weekend with the McCanns at their home in Rothley. "The interview was taped over the weekend and will be broadcast from next Monday," said an official of "Las Mañanas de Cuatro" adding that the case will be examined by several police officers, experts and journalists who were linked to the case. According to an unconfirmed source, Gonçalo Amaral, former coordinator of the PJ who led the investigation into the disappearance of Maddie, will also be on the set. Press release "There she was curled up against me. Then she took my engagement ring... She used to do this many times and put it... She put it as we read the story.... She is wonderful, what I can say." So Kate McCann recalls the last moments spent with her daughter. Next Monday marks the third anniversary of the disappearance of Madeleine. Three years in which her parents have not stopped looking for her. "Las Mañanas de Cuatro" celebrates 750 programs on the air with an exclusive of worldwide interest. Concha Garcia Campoy has gone to Rothley (England) to interview the McCanns and know how is their day to day without Maddie. Kate and Gerry have responded, without censorship, to all our questions. They talk about the doubts that still surround the case and their relationship with Gonçalo Amaral, the Portuguese policeman who was in charge of the investigation and who has always considered them suspects. "In my mind it is very clear that a man took Madeleine and we have to find him to know where my daughter is. That the police don't search for that man but suspect me and Gerry ... That hurts me." Kate and Gerry McCann tell us each point of their version of what happened that night. They categorically denied they had medicated children ("It's a shame that this was published. It has no basis. It's a lie") although they admit they could have made a mistake leaving them alone to go to dinner with a group of friends. "The guilt will never leave us, we made a mistake and we repeated it several nights in a row ... We never thought our children were in danger." They say that the have never hidden to Sean and Amelie, Maddie's brother and sister; what happened. "A psychologist told us to answer honestly all their questions ... We explained to them about the kidnapping, saying that if we want something we should not take it if it belongs to others. And they understood it. As a robbery." Three years after the disappearance of Madeleine, the McCanns do not give up. They say they will continue to fight "the time it takes." Currently, they are intending that the British police reopen the investigation. We celebrate 750 mornings together ... with new and interesting stories.

Maddie, the heartrending dilemma, 30 April 2010

Maddie, the heartrending dilemma Daily Mail By MARTIN SAMUEL Last updated at 2:01 AM on 30th April 2010 There are, it is roughly estimated, as many as 180,000 missing children in the United Kingdom. According to the home Office, the number of full-time police in England and Wales is 142,000. You see the problem, yes? Even if we took one officer and told him his only job was to find Madeleine McCann, he would still have to take alternate Thursdays off to help investigate some other disappearance. This is why there exists a point at which investigations into missing people are scaled down. Always reluctantly, always with the hope that one day circumstances will change, but Gerry McCann is wrong to say the police have given up on his daughter, as the third anniversary of her disappearance approaches. They have not forgotten, but simply lost the trail. This happens. Not every investigation can be resolved, or allowed to continue interminably when leads and clues are exhausted. I do not believe any police officer fails to comprehend the significance of finding Madeleine; not just for her parents, but for the mental health of the nation. Police may respond inadequately to vandalism or petty crime, but if any of the information Mr McCann says has recently been unearthed by private detectives was of use, an official investigation team would have been all over it. The charity PACT (Parents and Abducted Children Together) says one child goes missing every five minutes; the police, therefore, are not, like the McCanns, solely responsible for a single lost toddler. Are those most urgently in need of help now to join the end of an ancient queue? Police work prioritises, it shuffles resources, evolving in the most harshly pragmatic way. It cannot become mired in history, as cold as that sounds. Russell Bohling is a vulnerable 18-year-old with a speech impediment, who was about to inherit £300,000 to start his own business. His car has been found on a cliff top in east Yorkshire, and he is missing. The quicker police act, the more chance there is of resolution, happy or otherwise. At the same time there will be other cases in the area, as yet unanswered. each officer assigned to Russell’s disappearance is therefore being taken off another duty. What is the alternative? Give his family a number like at a supermarket delicatessen counter and tell them to wait their turn? ‘Find Madeleine’ was the campaign. The police tried and failed. Now they must find Russell. Next week, it will be someone else. Tragic realities are confronted all the time, but what more can they do?

Susan Lee prays the tenacity of Kate McCann will bear fruit, 30 April 2010

Susan Lee prays the tenacity of Kate McCann will bear fruit Liverpool Echo By Susan Lee Apr 30 2010 IT takes a hard heart indeed not to feel enormous sympathy for Kate McCann, never more so at this time of year when the anniversary of Madeleine's disappearance looms. But the piece she wrote for the ECHO this week cut especially deep. Honest and moving it shed a shaft of light into a life forever held on pause. And it made me wonder whether I, as a mum, could ever function like that. Of course the hard facts of the case never change. The story of the little girl with the distinctive flash in her eye who vanished into a Portuguese night is unchanged and until she is found Madeleine is frozen in time, forever that gorgeous three-year-old. What has altered are the existences of those who surrounded her. Three years is a long time and Kate admits that at times she can't believe how easily they have slipped away. Now, her other children can talk and walk, often including their missing big sister in their games. Now, Kate no longer does medical work but devotes her time to the campaign to find her daughter. Now they are a family of four instead of five. Yet nothing has really changed. Everything they do, every holiday or day out, every celebration or mealtime has a Madeleine shaped shadow over it. The abnormal has become the norm. It's inevitable but it would drive me to despair. Instead, and to Kate's credit, it drives her on. As a mum I can only salute her and pray to God that one day her tenacity will be rewarded.

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