It has been one of the films of the summer so far – the tale of Raynor Winn and her husband, Moth, who embark on the 630-mile South West Coast Path walk after their house is repossessed and Moth is diagnosed with a terminal illness.
There has been almost universal praise for the life-affirming story of The Salt Path, which has won rave reviews from critics. Until now.
On Sunday, The Observer published an investigation which made a series of claims about the author of the best-selling book on which the film is based.
The report alleged that Winn took tens of thousands from a former employer, and suggests she lied about being made homeless and about the circumstances under which the couple’s house was repossessed in the memoir. It also cast doubt over the legitimacy of Moth’s diagnosis.
Contacted by The Guardian, Winn said the Observer report was “highly misleading”.
“We are taking legal advice and won’t be making any further comment at this time.
“The Salt Path lays bare the physical and spiritual journey Moth and I shared, an experience that transformed us completely and altered the course of our lives. This is the true story of our journey.”
Raynor Winn – whose real name is Sally Walker, according to the report – took “around £64,000” from an estate agency and property surveyor where she worked as a bookkeeper. Walker was subsequently arrested, said the wife of the business owner.
The Salt Path describes the couple losing their home after investing a “substantial sum” in the business of a childhood friend of Moth – whose real name is Tim Walker, according to the Observer – which subsequently failed. According to Winn, the friend claimed the couple were responsible for company debts, and took them to court, where the judge ordered the repossession of their house.
However, it is claimed the Walkers’ house was in fact repossessed after the couple did not pay back a loan used to cover the money Walker took from the estate agency, according to the investigation. The Walkers borrowed £100,000 from a distant relative of Tim’s, and the loan was secured against their house.
It is alleged that the relative also helped Walker get a solicitor, who approached her former employer, Martin, with the offer that she would pay back the money and cover legal costs. The Observer claimed that Martin also agreed to sign a non-disclosure agreement, and that no criminal charges were pursued against Walker.
Tim’s relative’s business failed, and the Walkers’ house was ultimately repossessed in June 2013. Yet, while Winn depicts the couple as being made “homeless” and having nowhere to go, documents seen by the Observer show that the Walkers bought a house in France in 2007, which they still own.
The investigation also casts scepticism over Moth’s diagnosis of corticobasal degeneration (CBD), which he has apparently lived with for 18 years. Michele Hu, a professor of clinical neurosciences at Oxford University named in the report, said that she would be “very sceptical” that it is CBD. “I’ve never looked after anyone that’s lived that long.”
Following The Salt Path, Winn published two further books, The Wild Silence and Landlines. Each of the books opens with Moth suffering from the symptoms of CBD, before the couple go on a difficult walk and Moth’s symptoms seem to improve.
The Salt Path has sold more than two million copies worldwide since its publication in 2018. Last month, a film adaptation starring Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs was released in the UK.
“The film is a faithful adaptation of the book that we optioned,” said Number 9 Films and Shadowplay Features, the two production companies behind the film. “The allegations made in the Observer relate to the book and are a matter for the author Raynor Winn. There were no known claims against the book at the time of optioning it or producing and distributing the film and we undertook all necessary due diligence before acquiring the book.”
A fourth book by Winn, On Winter Hill, is scheduled to be released in October. Michael Joseph, the Penguin imprint that publishes Winn’s memoirs, did not comment or respond when asked whether the publication of On Winter Hill would go ahead.
PSPA, a charity which supports people with CBD and had worked with the Winns, has now ended its relationship with the family, according to the BBC. Winn has also withdrawn from the forthcoming Saltlines tour, on which she was scheduled to appear alongside The Gigspanner Big Band at a number of UK venues.
