# Hampstead England Child Abuse Allegations?? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 14, 2015, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hampstead-england-child-abuse-allegations/715013 "2015-03-14T23:07:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![carpetbeggar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d26b3c/32.png) [@carpetbeggar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carpetbeggar)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2015, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hampstead-england-child-abuse-allegations/715013/1 "2015-03-14T23:07:26Z")
> **[Hampstead Abuse Allegations: Court Seeks Removal of Videos as 'Campaigner'...](https://wideshut.co.uk/hampstead-abuse-allegations-court-seeks-removal-videos-campaigner-flees/)** > > Local Hampstead authority seeks to remove shocking videos and prosecute woman who helped them spread. What’s up with this? Is it a hoax? There are various videos on youtube, fb, etc of this little boy & girl talking about being sexually abused by their Father & other people, including teachers. One video has the boy being interviewed by a “police officer.” If this is real why hasn’t this been all over the major media stations & sites? The videos seem realistic, because who really would coach an 8 or 9 year old kid to say the things they say happened to them? I’m also skeptical because I’ve seen some real out there conspiracy, tin foil hat types banding together over it saying it’s a cover up, etc. Freaking weird deal. Can anyone clear this up? ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2015, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hampstead-england-child-abuse-allegations/715013/2 "2015-03-15T01:56:02Z")
Did you read the [update](http://wideshut.co.uk/judicial-review-hampstead-abuse-allegations-reveal-coaching-likely/) linked to on the very same page you cited? > [@](#): > > Documents and video relating to a judicial review request of the Hampstead satanic child abuse allegations have been leaked online. They reveal that the the police who carried out the initial investigation in September, 2014, and independent experts reviewing their handling of the case, both agree that the children have embellished their allegations. This was either through direct coaching of what to say, or the tendency to want to give the mother’s alleged abusive partner the answers he wanted to hear. > > While the independent expert called by the mother believes the case needs further probing, they agree that elements of the story are impossible. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2015, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hampstead-england-child-abuse-allegations/715013/3 "2015-03-15T04:30:56Z")
McMartin all over again? Remember how _that_ went? ---
**Author:** ![bonzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@bonzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonzer)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2015, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hampstead-england-child-abuse-allegations/715013/4 "2015-03-15T23:57:07Z")
I’m “reasonably” local to the site in question. So I can confirm that I haven’t seen anything in the local press about the allegations. Without having dug very deeply into the stories, there is the oddity about singling out the former Hampstead MacDonalds. For this was arguably at one point the most controversial branch of the franchise on the planet. When originally proposed, the Hampstead locals mounted a fierce local campaign: they did not want anything so common as a fast food outlet blighting their high street. And they won the partial victory, with the frontage being muted to match the rest of the street. The branch traded for a good few years, but folded a year or two back. Just somewhat odd that this very specific branch should crop up in this context. ---
**Author:** ![APB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e8cbc/32.png) [@APB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/APB)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hampstead-england-child-abuse-allegations/715013/5 "2015-03-20T14:20:31Z")
Over the past 24 hours or so, since Mrs Justice Pauffley delivered her ruling, many of the UK papers, including the _Times_, the [_Telegraph_](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/11482303/Satanic-cult-claims-dismissed-by-High-Court-judge.html), the [_Independent_](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/high-court-judge-dismisses-satanic-cult-abuse-claims-10120967.html#), the [_Daily Mail_](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3003247/Mother-partner-tortured-two-children-lie-satanic-child-sex-cult-based-primary-school-judge-rules.html) and the [_Ham & High_](http://www.hamhigh.co.uk/news/crime-court/internet_campaign_satanic_cult_hampstead_school_fantasy_judge_1_4000891), have reported on the case. In other words, they did the sensible thing and respected the standard court-imposed reporting restrictions while the case was still in progress. Unlike some of the more foolish online campaigners… ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hampstead-england-child-abuse-allegations/715013/6 "2015-03-20T15:56:38Z")
Am I misunderstanding this, or are there actually substantial numbers of people who think there is a satanic baby cooking cult in Hampstead? ---
**Author:** ![APB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e8cbc/32.png) [@APB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/APB)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hampstead-england-child-abuse-allegations/715013/7 "2015-03-20T16:09:03Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Am I misunderstanding this, or are there actually substantial numbers of people who think there is a satanic baby cooking cult in Hampstead? Probably not. But as with most outlandish stuff online, it’s difficult to measure. Just because a Google search can turn up lots of websites doesn’t mean that more than a few nutcases believe something. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2015, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hampstead-england-child-abuse-allegations/715013/8 "2015-03-21T16:57:32Z")
There was something similar in Scotland a decade ago. In that case the police and Social Services made dawn swoops and snatched children from their beds. The allegations were later found to be baseless. In some cases the children spent months in council ‘care’ before being returned to their families. Edit - On 13 March 1990, the headline of the Daily Mirror read, “Kids forced into satan orgies”. > **[Satanic child abuse claims are almost certainly based on false memories |...](https://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/nov/18/satanic-child-abuse-false-memories-scotland)** > > Chris French: If anyone has evidence of satanic abuse in Scotland they should take it to the police, but lurid media reporting of unsubstantiated claims is counterproductive