Kate McCann: the agony of the long distance mother.

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Kate McCann arriving at the police station in Portugal for questioning, September 2007

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Kate McCann and Aled Jones on Good Morning Sunday, March 2010

I realise that Kate McCann was in Portugal when the first photo was taken, and she had that healthy glow from being in the sun so much, witnessed by all that sun cream she had to wash off Cuddle Cat, but to me there is more than three years and a few thousand miles between those photos. Kate McCann looking like she's still on holiday and Kate McCann, the good mother, being interviewed on a Mothering Sunday religious programme about her Catholic faith, two and a half years later. Well, she did once say that if she looked more maternal, she might get more sympathy!

It's been a hard nearly three years, though, I imagine: all that traveling around Europe, all those interviews, all those photo-ops! Phew! She really has gone the distance!

Thanks to Nigel at The McCann Files we have a transcript of Kate McCann's latest public outing, though it was recorded before her run for Missing People last weekend.

I'm not going to comment on all of the clichéd drivel that came out of Kate's mouth, just a few of the comments that seemed particularly worth remarking on.

AJ: And what about your other children? How aware are they of what's happening?

KM: .................... But they talk about finding her, about, you know, finding Madeleine, and running away with her and coming back home and even things like when we go on holiday, they say, "Oh, what will happen if the police find Madeleine and we're not there?", you know, and we say, "Oh, don't worry," you know, "our next door neighbours will let us know."

Is Kate MCann saying that Sean and Amelie are being encouraged to believe that if their sister were to miraculously turn up, she'd suddenly appear at the house and the neighbours would just give them a call and say, "By the way, Madeleine's here."? Just like that! All casual like! Nothing to do with police and doctors checking out a child who'd been missing for nearly three years!

"..........And they're very aware but they're very positive. I mean, they'll always talk about when Madeleine comes home. Sean said to me the other week... well, Amelie said to me, "Why do you work, mummy?" and I said, "Well," you know, "I've gotta find Madeleine." and Sean said, "Yes, mummy, but when that's over; when Madeleine's home, what will you do?", you know, and you think, 'Oh, bring it on', you know."

Sorry, but I just don't believe that a five-year-old would say that! This smacks more of Kate McCann's angling for some kind of role with a missing children's charity. She's letting us know through this supposed quote from Sean, that she's working so hard and she could carry on working like this, should the Maddie case come to some kind of resolution. Ah yes, what will you be hoping to be doing Kate McCann?

AJ: So what's Madeleine like?

KM: Oh, in some ways you just want everyone to meet her because, errm... she's just an amazing little character full of personality, loads of energy, quite knowing, errm... really funny and loving and,..

What? You can predict what Maddie would be like after nearly three years, if she had been abducted? She is now, after all that time in a "hellish lair," in a "lawless village," being held by a swarthy abductor, "funny and loving."? And if by some strange chance she did turn up, you'd just want to run around introducing her to everyone? After being abducted by a stranger and being held for nearly three years, she may be rather sensitised to meeting new people! But there you go! I guess it might be a bit like showing everyone your new Gucci handbag!

"............you know her relationship with Sean and Amelie is incredible really. And thats something that still gets to me at times when I see them playing and then they start talking about Madeleine.."

What relationship? Even if they had spent a lot of time with their sister, which you, Kate, said did not happen, they were two years and three months old when their sister disappeared. They're five years old now and if they have any memory of their sister, it must be so vague by now as to appear unreal. Yet, here you are talking about "relationship," in the present tense. I think this is a construct of your mind, Kate McCann, embellished by your stories about Maddie, firing the flames of a relationship that never existed. Your children have a fantasy relationship with a sister they never knew and cannot ever know, because we all know that there will be no need for the next door neighbour to make that call.

You don't seem to know very much about classical music, Kate McCann:

KM: ........since Madeleine was taken from us I actually struggled quite a lot to listen to music and I'd... I'd actually put classical music on rather than anything remotely, I guess, happy, you know,...

There's no happy classical music? What were you listening to?

AJ: Do you find that your prayers have changed over the years?

KM: ............But I pray for the people who have taken Madeleine, the people who know whats happened to Madeleine and the people around... related to the person who's taken Madeleine.

So, Kate McCann, you and your husband believe that your daughter was taken by a paedophile and is being kept, according to your private investigator, in a "hellish lair."? In what way and in what terms might a mother in your situation pray for someone who might be abusing her daughter every day of her life?

"........I pray for the police and the investigators; people who are looking for her;..."

I thought you said the police weren't looking for your daughter?

At the beginning of the interview, Kate McCann said this:

KM: ..........You know, I think motherhood is a real gift and obviously I've got three children and it's another reminder that one of my babies isn't with me...

So, at nearly seven years old, Maddie is "one of my babies."?

But later in the interview:

KM: ..........You know, I'd... got to the stage where me and Madeleine would go for lunch together, you know, and it felt like a real girl's day out, and...

So, at nearly four years old, having lunch with Maddie was like "a girls' day out," but she's now one of your babies?

A nearly four-year-old child is not one of the girls. And if, in spite of all the evidence, or lack of it, to the contrary, she had been abducted by a swarthy paedophile, her baby days would be a long long way behind her, and she wouldn't be as funny as she once was. Neither would she be rushing excitedly to join in with the games of two siblings she hardly knew before and she would not recognise now.

Do you think she'd even recognise you, Kate McCann? You have changed over these nearly three years and that length of time would be nearly half of Maddie's lifetime.

"When she's upset, I want to be there. And I just want to bring her back into the warmth and love of our family, really."

And you think that's realistic? That if a child were abducted by strangers and held for nearly three years, she could just slip happily back into the loving arms of her family? Dream on Mrs McCann! It wouldn't happen and I expect you know that dreaming and pretending with your two remaining children is OK, because it simply ain't gonna happen, is it?