An alibi from Neville is better than no alibi at all :

[susan]

Adam correct me if I am wrong but Jeremy had a very small house and an answering machine

[Adam]

Adam of course I will providing you only wear your bow tie when I come for dinner and leave your answering machine switched on

I will compliment you're violin playing with my tambourine.

[maggie]

Dragged ? It is my opinion.

Sleeping like a log. The 'downstairs' phone starts ringing.

You wake up, switch the light on. Check the time, decide whether to answer the phone. Get out of bed, go downstairs.

My estimate is at least 20 rings.

Good of Neville to wait.

Some people wake up and get up at the same time, don't bother with lights, his curtains may have been open, it was a summer night, just go to the phone on automatic.  We are all different.
You don't have the faintest idea what Jeremy did that night, give it a rest please Adam it's VERY boring.

[Adam]

Adam correct me if I am wrong but Jeremy had a very small house and an answering machine

Correct.

My original question was why didn't the answering machine have a message from Neville ? Jeremy would not have answered the phone within five rings unless already awake.

But everyone answered, Jeremy had switched it off.

[maggie]

Correct.

My original question was why didn't the answering machine have a message from Neville ? Jeremy would not have answered the phone within five rings unless already awake.

But everyone answered, Jeremy had switched it off.

Adam, we don't know and you don't know, end of story.  Why don't you write and ask Jeremy, I'm sure he will fill you in he answers all his post.

[susan]

Hello Nickos

how do we know Jeremy Bamber had his answering machine turned off.  The police removed it from the house.  I seem to think this is Adam's theory Jeremy was not as lucky as you my love with a phone at the side of his bed   I only take phone calls at certain parts of the day I sometimes get calls in the middle of the night somebody wanting a cab perhaps it is Grahame

[Jane]

Some people wake up and get up at the same time, don't bother with lights, his curtains may have been open, it was a summer night, just go to the phone on automatic.  We are all different.
You don't have the faintest idea what Jeremy did that night, give it a rest please Adam it's VERY boring.

The lights may not have been off. Adam is only able to say what he thinks he would do. He has no way of knowing what others would do.

[Adam]

Some people wake up and get up at the same time, don't bother with lights, his curtains may have been open, it was a summer night, just go to the phone on automatic.  We are all different.
You don't have the faintest idea what Jeremy did that night, give it a rest please Adam it's VERY boring.

Yes but within 3-5 rings ?

It was 3.26. So dark. His bedroom door may be shut & he said himself he was 'sleeping like a log' after a 14 hour day.

Good of Neville to wait. Especially as he had already called EP.

[susan]

Adam how do you know his answering machine did not have a message on it from Ralph

[Jane]

Yes but within 3-5 rings ?

It was 3.26. So dark. His bedroom door may be shut & he said himself he was 'sleeping like a log' after a 14 hour day.

Good of Neville to wait. Especially as he had already called EP.

But it may also have been open. It's also possible that "sleeping like a log" means different things to different people and will certainly depend on how long they have been asleep.

[Adam]

Adam, we don't know and you don't know, end of story.  Why don't you write and ask Jeremy, I'm sure he will fill you in he answers all his post.

It is not end of story.

No phone call from Neville = a guilty Jeremy.

Jeremy had mysteriously turned his answering machine off. Neville mysteriously waited a long time for Jeremy to answer.

What if there was an 'Adam' in the jury asking these questions ?

[Adam]

Adam how do you know his answering machine did not have a message on it from Ralph

Now that would be something.

[Jan]

Correct.

My original question was why didn't the answering machine have a message from Neville ? Jeremy would not have answered the phone within five rings unless already awake.

But everyone answered, Jeremy had switched it off.

No they did not. They said it could have been switched off . You have no idea how many rings it was before JB answered , it is all supposition. Every answering machine can be set to a different number of rings before it answers and records. You always ask for proof for our replies - where is your proof that it rang 20 times?  Where is your proof that you know how long it would take JB to get down stairs? How any stairs did he have in his house? How do you know the police actually took the machine to test it? 

[maggie]

It is not end of story.

No phone call from Neville = a guilty Jeremy.

Jeremy had mysteriously turned his answering machine off. Neville mysteriously waited a long time for Jeremy to answer.

What if there was an 'Adam' in the jury asking these questions ?

What I mean is we have no more facts, instead of speculating over and over like a broken record, why don't you write and ask Jeremy, that would be constructive and help you to answer your question.

[susan]

Adam I play the tambourine as well when I am out with the Salvation Army getting my butt pinched in the pubs.  Will be out tomorrow night busy night in the Highlands