Panorama Tonight 21.00 BBC1

[Wizardardo]

Gerry McCann has spoken in a personal video of his belief that his family was watched by "a predator" in the days before his daughter's disappearance.
In the video, filmed by a family friend in August and to be screened on BBC One's Panorama, he tells of a "window of opportunity" taken by an abductor.

That belief made him and wife Kate "sick to the core", he said.

Madeleine, of Rothley, Leics, vanished from a holiday apartment in Portugal on 3 May, days before her fourth birthday.

The footage - filmed in Portugal by friend Jon Corner and to be shown as part of a Panorama programme on Monday - captures a time when suspicion over the disappearance began to fall on the couple.

The McCanns, both 39, became suspects with "arguido" status in the case in September but deny any involvement.

Mr McCann said that, before Madeleine went missing, he and his wife had been concerned by the security at the back of their Praia da Luz apartment when "maybe the weak spots were at the front".

"It's a corner flat with trees overlooking it - somebody could be hiding there or watching out of view," he said.

He added: "I've no doubt that Madeleine was targeted and that makes us sick to the core to think that someone was watching us and our daughter and then targeted her - I think the true word is a predator.

"But you just don't think there's any trouble and it's certainly the furthest thing from our mind."

Campaign pressure

In one scene on the video, Kate is shown hanging washing out to dry while, in another, Mr McCann is shown making missing posters of Madeleine on his laptop computer.

Also in the film, Mrs McCann talks of the pressures posed by the campaign to find Madeleine and her regret at leaving their children alone in the apartment on 3 May.

The couple dined with a group of friends as they left Madeleine and their two other children asleep in an apartment nearby.

"There's not a textbook about it is there? Like what to do when your daughter gets abducted," she said.

"It's awful and horrible for anyone to have to go through and we are just doing what we think is best."

Possible sighting

The Panorama programme also features an interview with the McCanns' friend Jane Tanner, who dined with the couple in a tapas restaurant on the night of Madeleine's disappearance.

In an exclusive interview, she told the BBC she saw a man carrying a child through Praia da Luz.

Meanwhile, the head of the Spanish private detective agency hired by the McCanns has told US network CBS in an interview he was certain Madeleine was abducted and the abductor was close to being caught.

The couple's spokesman Clarence Mitchell has also confirmed that a possible sighting of Madeleine somewhere in Portugal on 5 May was now being investigated by private detectives.

Panorama: The Mystery of Madeleine McCann will be shown on BBC One at 2100 GMT on Monday, 19 November.

Maybe this show will give an insight into exactly what is going on in the search for Maddy

I for one am intrigued into how the police and The McCanns are going about the search for little Maddy as obviously the news can't tell us much apart from speculation so this should give us the facts

[Abigail]

The private investigors, Motodo 3 or something like that, say they are very close to finding Maddy. They know she is alive and they know who has got her. They also know that she was "stolen to order."

I'll be watching this tonight.

[Wizardardo]

Very interesting this

Not much being said by The McCanns them self just people around them. If they want to tell the story why don't they tell it themselves?

[Chloe O'brien]

If a witness believes she saw Madeline being abducted why was this not reported earlier. I hope that the McCann's did not have anything to do with Maddie going missing and that the police find out the truth on what really happened that night, but whatever happens whether Maddie is found alive or dead. The McCanns should still face some kind of charge of neglect as no parent with an ounce of common sense leaves their children alone in a room to go out to eat.

[DaVeyWaVey]

A very interesting programme... I also hope that Kate and Gerry didn't have anything to do with their daughter's abduction. On the documentary, they really did seem genuinely sad, which makes me feel they had nothing to do with it.

Some of the theories were quite freaky though - like the abductor could have been hiding in the apartment when Gerry came to check on Maddie. It's so sad though, and at the end of the day, if Gerry and Kate weren't foolish enough to leave their kids on their own whilst they dined for dinner, then they could have prevented it from happening. They were extremely foolish, but I do feel genuinely sympathise with them as I can't even begin to imagine what it's like to lose your own daughter like that.

The woman saying she seen a figure carrying a child was rather interesting too - kind of pushes the theory that Maddie was abducted. I really hope she's found alive even though it's been so long now since it happened.

[Wizardardo]

If a witness believes she saw Madeline being abducted why was this not reported earlier. I hope that the McCann's did not have anything to do with Maddie going missing and that the police find out the truth on what really happened that night, but whatever happens whether Maddie is found alive or dead. The McCanns should still face some kind of charge of neglect as no parent with an ounce of common sense leaves their children alone in a room to go out to eat.

Totally agree with you there Chloe

I just wonder why they haven't been charged with neglect already

They have reportedly drugged Maddy while they were out having a meal, surely there is something illegal about that and that came out when this first came out that she had been abducted. They should have been arrested on the spot

If they wanted a holiday without children so they could go out on the town they should have left the children with grandparents or other family and went alone or failing that not at all

It's just all very fishy to me in that there wasn't just Maddy there that night why just take Maddy and not the other children

I'm beginning to believe that maybe they were some how involved and have been amazing in covering there tracks

[Abigail]

If they wanted a holiday without children so they could go out on the town they should have left the children with grandparents or other family and went alone or failing that not at all

They have reportedly drugged Maddy while they were out having a meal, surely there is something illegal about that and that came out when this first came out that she had been abducted. They should have been arrested on the spot

I'm beginning to believe that maybe they were some how involved and have been amazing in covering there tracks

Kate and Gerry weren't 'out on the town', they were at a restaurant on the complex 40 yards away having a meal.

There is no evidence to suggest that they drugged Maddy, it's just speculation fueled by the Portugese press. You can't arrest somebody with no evidence. How could you possibly prove that they drugged her when there is no body and no physical evidence such as tablets or syringes?????

If Kate and Gerry had been involved then they are miracle workers in covering their tracks for this long. It's almost impossible for somebody to kill a person, hide their body and then dispose of it without anybody noticing something. Plus, in the time frame released to the media there would have been very little, if no time at all to kill Maddy in the apartment then dispose of the body without any suspicions being raised, such as a long time away from the table. Remember that it wasn't just Kate and Gerry who were checking on Maddy and the twins, some of the adults in the party were taking it in turns.

The McCann's are banned by Portuguese law from talking about the investigation. If they do they could go to prison for up to a year.

Another thing, if the McCann's had anything to do with Maddy's disappearance why would they hire private investigators? These PI's have a 100% track record, they have not failed to find a child yet. Would the McCann's really take the risk of being found out???

[Wizardardo]

If they wanted a holiday without children so they could go out on the town they should have left the children with grandparents or other family and went alone or failing that not at all

They have reportedly drugged Maddy while they were out having a meal, surely there is something illegal about that and that came out when this first came out that she had been abducted. They should have been arrested on the spot

I'm beginning to believe that maybe they were some how involved and have been amazing in covering there tracks

Kate and Gerry weren't 'out on the town', they were at a restaurant on the complex 40 yards away having a meal.

There is no evidence to suggest that they drugged Maddy, it's just speculation fueled by the Portugese press. You can't arrest somebody with no evidence. How could you possibly prove that they drugged her when there is no body and no physical evidence such as tablets or syringes?????

If Kate and Gerry had been involved then they are miracle workers in covering their tracks for this long. It's almost impossible for somebody to kill a person, hide their body and then dispose of it without anybody noticing something. Plus, in the time frame released to the media there would have been very little, if no time at all to kill Maddy in the apartment then dispose of the body without any suspicions being raised, such as a long time away from the table. Remember that it wasn't just Kate and Gerry who were checking on Maddy and the twins, some of the adults in the party were taking it in turns.

The McCann's are banned by Portuguese law from talking about the investigation. If they do they could go to prison for up to a year.

Another thing, if the McCann's had anything to do with Maddy's disappearance why would they hire private investigators? These PI's have a 100% track record, they have not failed to find a child yet. Would the McCann's really take the risk of being found out???

Yes but when you go abroad theses days all of the pubs and restaurants allow children and if i took my children on holiday there is no way I'd leave them in the apartment alone in a strange country

The McCanns already said that they not in the words "Drugged" but they have said that they used a method to knock Maddy out because she has trouble sleeping. Why else would they go out and leave her alone. Imagine if she woke up and nobody was there. She's 3 years old for gods sake and there was also the twins

If you want to dispose of a body there is a large ocean there where it's impossible to find a body if it went in. I'm not saying they definitely did it. It's personal opinion and to be fair weather they did it or not they would have to go about it the way they are now as not to arouse suspicion or if they did do it to get the blame away from them

Plus they also said they would never leave Portugal until Maddy was found and now they are back in England

Just for me there is to many question marks that are not being answered

[Jojo]

An attempt has been made to bring a private prosection against the McCann's for child neglect apparently.

The Daily Express (http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/25346/McCanns-to-face-neglect-charges) amongst other news agencies has reported this recently.

She (Kate McCann) has also now decided to refuse to undergo a lie detector test also apparently (story here) (http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/25546/Madeleine-mystery-Kate-refuses-lie-test).

[Abigail]

The McCanns already said that they not in the words "Drugged" but they have said that they used a method to knock Maddy out because she has trouble sleeping. Why else would they go out and leave her alone. Imagine if she woke up and nobody was there. She's 3 years old for gods sake and there was also the twins

If you want to dispose of a body there is a large ocean there where it's impossible to find a body if it went in. I'm not saying they definitely did it. It's personal opinion and to be fair weather they did it or not they would have to go about it the way they are now as not to arouse suspicion or if they did do it to get the blame away from them

Plus they also said they would never leave Portugal until Maddy was found and now they are back in England


Lots of children have trouble sleeping. Lots of parents use remedies like Kalms etc for children to induce natural sleepiness. Why should that be any different when they go on holiday? It doesn't mean that they specifically gave her something to help her sleep with the intention of going out, hoping she would sleep.

I don't know what you mean by "why else would they go out and leave her alone?"

If you dispose of a body in the sea then you have to weight the body down sufficiently to ensure that it doesn't float. Then you have to hire a boat, get far enough out to sea (at least a mile), dump the body then get back. There is no way that that could have been done in the time frame and without anybody noticing something.

They came back to England on the advice of child psychologists to ensure as normal a life for the twins as they could. Even though one of their children is missing they still have two others, plus their jobs, mortgage, bills etc to consider.

[Wizardardo]

Alot of newspaper rumours will come out now

Panorama seems to have that effect on cases

[DaVeyWaVey]

The media were onto the McCanns like a shot - so there is no chance they could have killed their daughter, then got rid of the body and any evidence without no one noticing, as the police and the media started crawling all over them as soon as Maddie went missing.

[Wizardardo]

The McCanns already said that they not in the words "Drugged" but they have said that they used a method to knock Maddy out because she has trouble sleeping. Why else would they go out and leave her alone. Imagine if she woke up and nobody was there. She's 3 years old for gods sake and there was also the twins

If you want to dispose of a body there is a large ocean there where it's impossible to find a body if it went in. I'm not saying they definitely did it. It's personal opinion and to be fair weather they did it or not they would have to go about it the way they are now as not to arouse suspicion or if they did do it to get the blame away from them

Plus they also said they would never leave Portugal until Maddy was found and now they are back in England


Lots of children have trouble sleeping. Lots of parents use remedies like Kalms etc for children to induce natural sleepiness. Why should that be any different when they go on holiday? It doesn't mean that they specifically gave her something to help her sleep with the intention of going out, hoping she would sleep.

I don't know what you mean by "why else would they go out and leave her alone?"

If you dispose of a body in the sea then you have to weight the body down sufficiently to ensure that it doesn't float. Then you have to hire a boat, get far enough out to sea (at least a mile), dump the body then get back. There is no way that that could have been done in the time frame and without anybody noticing something.

They came back to England on the advice of child psychologists to ensure as normal a life for the twins as they could. Even though one of their children is missing they still have two others, plus their jobs, mortgage, bills etc to consider.

To be fair we could argue about this until the end of time and all we would have is speculation

All I'm saying is every day and the longer it goes on the finger is pointing more and more at The McCanns. After all if the police can't solve it how are a bunch of people on a Internet forum supposed to

[Wizardardo]

The one thing i will say is the evidence that has been released and that is that blood was found on the hire car and if you watched the show tonight the mileage on the car is a hell of a lot more than what they say they have used the car for and that is a fact. That was what led to them being named as suspects so that is fact

[Abigail]

An attempt has been made to bring a private prosection against the McCann's for child neglect apparently.

The Daily Express (http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/25346/McCanns-to-face-neglect-charges) amongst other news agencies has reported this recently.

She (Kate McCann) has also now decided to refuse to undergo a lie detector test also apparently (story here) (http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/25546/Madeleine-mystery-Kate-refuses-lie-test).

This from the guy who has tried to bring numerous private prosecution against people and all either got thrown out of court or resulted in no conviction. It was in the Daily Mail one day last week.

How the hell did he get hold of six pages of evidence anyway when he hasn't met the couple and has absolutely nothing to do with the investigation?

I'm sorry but I can't believe that Kate and Gerry are the only parents in the world that would leave their children whilst they go out for a meal. If, as is thought by the police and the PI's, the McCann's were being stalked and Maddy was stolen to order, then these people would have found a way to take her anyway.

[Wizardardo]

But in that case why just Maddy? The twins were there as well

[Chloe O'brien]

I don't believe they drugged Maddie or any of their other children intentionally, maybe they gave them some calpol but that still doesn't excuse them from leaving the children alone in a hotel room. It was a family holiday they could have let the kids sleep in their buggies while they eat or let them stay up later with them being on holiday. If they were back home would they leave the children alone in the house while they went out for a meal on a Saturday night. No!! so why do it when they're abroad. and let's not forget it wasn't just the McCanns that left their childen alone but the other adults who they were on holiday with. They should all face some kind of criminal charge for leaving the children alone.

[Abigail]

The one thing i will say is the evidence that has been released and that is that blood was found on the hire car and if you watched the show tonight the mileage on the car is a hell of a lot more than what they say they have used the car for and that is a fact. That was what led to them being named as suspects so that is fact

Yes but the hire car was also returned to the dealer and several people used the car after it was returned. Forensics weren't carried out until six weeks after the car was returned by which time several different people had used the car and contaminated it.

Maddy also cut her knee when getting off the plane (video footage proves this) and it was on her clothes, which were in the car when the McCann's moved apartments.

The DNA evidence is inconclusive. Maddy will share a very high percentage of her DNA with her parents and siblings. Without a complete profile from Maddy then it is impossible to say for certain that it is her blood in the car.

To be honest, the whole police case is a shambles. The car wasn't taken for evidence for six week. Th apartment wasn't fully forensicated, the mattress and bedsheets weren't examined; they could have produced a fingerprint or DNA from somebody else.

[DaVeyWaVey]

But there's also eye witness statements, about various people seeing a figure acting suspicious, days before Maddie was abducted, and on the same night, that woman who was on Panoroma said she seen someone carry a child, so that pushes the theory that Maddie was abducted..

I'm sorry, but it doesn't ring true to me that the McCanns could have been responsible. They were extremely foolish leaving their children and the poor couple have been overanalysed, ever since their daughter went missing and been called suspicious just because of "the way they act" :rolleyes: I'm sure people react in different ways to any tragedy that happens..but the McCanns have to act in a certain way according to the police to not have the finger pointed at them - pure rubbish evidence if they are looking to blame them if you ask me.

[Wizardardo]

The one thing i will say is the evidence that has been released and that is that blood was found on the hire car and if you watched the show tonight the mileage on the car is a hell of a lot more than what they say they have used the car for and that is a fact. That was what led to them being named as suspects so that is fact

Yes but the hire car was also returned to the dealer and several people used the car after it was returned. Forensics weren't carried out until six weeks after the car was returned by which time several different people had used the car and contaminated it.

Maddy also cut her knee when getting off the plane (video footage proves this) and it was on her clothes, which were in the car when the McCanns moved apartments.

The DNA evidence is inconclusive. Maddy will share a very high percentage of her DNA with her parents and siblings. Without a complete profile from Maddy then it is impossible to say for certain that it is her blood in the car.

To be honest, the whole police case is a shambles. The car wasn't taken for evidence for six week. Th apartment wasn't fully forensicated, the mattress and bedsheets weren't examined; they could have produced a fingerprint or DNA from somebody else.

I agree with you there. The whole case is a shambles but the only thing that's leading me to this is that they haven't found any evidence of anybody else being involved

Even the best criminals in the world leave clues or slip up somewhere but this is just to perfect of a crime if it was a snatch

[Abigail]

The one thing i will say is the evidence that has been released and that is that blood was found on the hire car and if you watched the show tonight the mileage on the car is a hell of a lot more than what they say they have used the car for and that is a fact. That was what led to them being named as suspects so that is fact

Yes but the hire car was also returned to the dealer and several people used the car after it was returned. Forensics weren't carried out until six weeks after the car was returned by which time several different people had used the car and contaminated it.

Maddy also cut her knee when getting off the plane (video footage proves this) and it was on her clothes, which were in the car when the McCanns moved apartments.

The DNA evidence is inconclusive. Maddy will share a very high percentage of her DNA with her parents and siblings. Without a complete profile from Maddy then it is impossible to say for certain that it is her blood in the car.

To be honest, the whole police case is a shambles. The car wasn't taken for evidence for six week. Th apartment wasn't fully forensicated, the mattress and bedsheets weren't examined; they could have produced a fingerprint or DNA from somebody else.

I agree with you there. The whole case is a shambles but the only thing that's leading me to this is that they haven't found any evidence of anybody else being involved

Even the best criminals in the world leave clues or slip up somewhere but this is just to perfect of a crime if it was a snatch

There is no solid evidence that they are involved. Very weak forensics, yes, but nothing that would stand up in court, as has been proved when the Portugese judge said that the case would not stand up in court. A British high court judge has also reviewed the evidence and said the same. They can't be charged with murder; no body, no weapon, no evidence.

Like Dave said, just because Kate and Gerry acted differently to how other people would react in a situation like this does not mean that they had anything to with her disappearance. They are doctors, they are used to keeping their emotions in check when people die or are seriously ill or there is a high stress situation.

[Wizardardo]

The one thing i will say is the evidence that has been released and that is that blood was found on the hire car and if you watched the show tonight the mileage on the car is a hell of a lot more than what they say they have used the car for and that is a fact. That was what led to them being named as suspects so that is fact

Yes but the hire car was also returned to the dealer and several people used the car after it was returned. Forensics weren't carried out until six weeks after the car was returned by which time several different people had used the car and contaminated it.

Maddy also cut her knee when getting off the plane (video footage proves this) and it was on her clothes, which were in the car when the McCanns moved apartments.

The DNA evidence is inconclusive. Maddy will share a very high percentage of her DNA with her parents and siblings. Without a complete profile from Maddy then it is impossible to say for certain that it is her blood in the car.

To be honest, the whole police case is a shambles. The car wasn't taken for evidence for six week. Th apartment wasn't fully forensicated, the mattress and bedsheets weren't examined; they could have produced a fingerprint or DNA from somebody else.

I agree with you there. The whole case is a shambles but the only thing that's leading me to this is that they haven't found any evidence of anybody else being involved

Even the best criminals in the world leave clues or slip up somewhere but this is just to perfect of a crime if it was a snatch

There is no solid evidence that they are involved. Very weak forensics, yes, but nothing that would stand up in court, as has been proved when the Portugese judge said that the case would not stand up in court. A British high court judge has also reviewed the evidence and said the same. They can't be charged with murder; no body, no weapon, no evidence.

Like Dave said, just because Kate and Gerry acted differently to how other people would react in a situation like this does not mean that they had anything to with her disappearance. They are doctors, they are used to keeping their emotions in check when people die or are seriously ill or there is a high stress situation.

There is no way you can say because they are Doctors they can keep there emotions in check when there child is reportedly abducted

Nothing in the world can prepare or help anybody deal with losing a child

[Abigail]

There is no way you can say because they are Doctors they can keep there emotions in check when there child is reportedly abducted
Nothing in the world can prepare or help anybody deal with losing a child

I didn't mean that because they are doctors they can switch their emotions off completly. I meant that they can maybe be more in control that I would be.
It was reported in the news that their spokesperson had told them not to be upset on TV or in the papers because if the abductor was watching they may be getting off on it.

Anyway, I'm going to shut up now and leave this thread because I've said my bit and argued my point and I've run out of things to say. Not meant in a nasty or rude way at all.

:D

[Wizardardo]

There is no way you can say because they are Doctors they can keep there emotions in check when there child is reportedly abducted
Nothing in the world can prepare or help anybody deal with losing a child

I didn't mean that because they are doctors they can switch their emotions off completly. I meant that they can maybe be more in control that I would be.
It was reported in the news that their spokesperson had told them not to be upset on TV or in the papers because if the abductor was watching they may be getting off on it.

Anyway, I'm going to shut up now and leave this thread because I've said my bit and argued my point and I've run out of things to say. Not meant in a nasty or rude way at all.

:D

lol and a very good point you have made

At the end of the day everybody is going to have an opinion and to be honest unless Maddy is found which i pray to god she is then we will never know

No matter what we all think we all pray she is safe and comes back soon :)

[Abigail]

At the end of the day everybody is going to have an opinion and to be honest unless Maddy is found which i pray to god she is then we will never know

No matter what we all think we all pray she is safe and comes back soon :)

Indeed. All that really matters is that she is found alive and well. I don't want to think about what she might have been through in the past eight months but I suppose that's preferable to not being alive.

[pookie1968uk]

if anyone was found to have left three very young children alone in this country then at the very least social services would be involved. why is it been overlooked in their case? i really dont understand why. You never leave young children alone, ever!
and if like we are led to believe quite a few people do it on holiday then they should be ashamed of themselves, if you have children you look after them, not leave them at risk for your own selfish reasons.
sorry to rant on but it does annoy me!
of course i feel really sorry for the McCanns and really hope that madeleine is found safe but they left their children alone, end of story.

[Siobhan]

I agree.. Gerry was even quoted to have said he was worried about security in the building BEFORE Maddy disappeared, a concern he discussed with Kate and yet they still felt it was OK to leave 3 small children alone. Regards of wether you think they did something or it was an abductor.. it beggers belief that any parent who call themselves RESPONSIBLE would still leave their most precious children in an unlocked room alone if they felt security was a risk!!

That to me is the crime, that to me is what started this chain of events. I wonder is they safely locked up there valuable (jewelery, passport etc) or were they do left out on a table in an unlocked room?????

they should be charged with neglect and reckless abandonment. I would never ever leave my children alone in the most secure of places..

[.:SpIcYsPy:.]

Personally watching this show just made me even more confused on what to think :lol: Was really creepy when Gerry said they could have been in the appartment though!