'Shut that (bedroom) door'.

[Jane]

Those familiar with the house stated it is time consuming to navigate the stairs.  He allegedly was sleeping like a log and a phone from a distance is not going to make him fall out of his bed like it would if right next to his head ringing in his ear.  After waking up he would have to make the decision to not continue to let it ring but rather to bother to go answer.  The average answering machine would ring 5-6 times and then answer.  It would have picked up and he thus would have had proof of the call had his claims been true.

Scipio, I have to ask. Time consuming as compared to WHAT? I suspect it is a normal 13 step straight stair case. He hadn't only JUST moved into the house so would have been totally au fait with moving around in it. I will agree that much "fudging" is done in two up, two downs but that is only likely to present difficulties to unsuspecting visitors. I can't argue about how many times a phone would ring before the answering device worked. Would it have been possible to have set it to ones own needs?

[Jan]

the police took the answering machine , and yes you can set it for as many rings as you want and and times you can obviously turn it off.

if the phone rings in the early in the morning when it is quiet , then personally I would always rush to the phone because I would think it must be an emergency , otherwise why would someone ring at that time. And Jeremy only lived in a small cottage - so its not rocket science. He could have got to the phone .

And I could easily get to my phone before the answering machine kicks in. Even early in the morning.

So all it goes to show is we are all different and I don't see the point of going round this AGAIN , because there is no definitive answer.

[Jane]

the police took the answering machine , and yes you can set it for as many rings as you want and and times you can obviously turn it off.

if the phone rings in the early in the morning when it is quiet , then personally I would always rush to the phone because I would think it must be an emergency , otherwise why would someone ring at that time. And Jeremy only lived in a small cottage - so its not rocket science. He could have got to the phone .

And I could easily get to my phone before the answering machine kicks in. Even early in the morning.

So all it goes to show is we are all different and I don't see the point of going round this AGAIN , because there is no definitive answer.

Jansus, your comment "...........there is no definitive answer" could be applied to 99% of the questions Adam asks.

[Adam]

the police took the answering machine , and yes you can set it for as many rings as you want and and times you can obviously turn it off.

if the phone rings in the early in the morning when it is quiet , then personally I would always rush to the phone because I would think it must be an emergency , otherwise why would someone ring at that time. And Jeremy only lived in a small cottage - so its not rocket science. He could have got to the phone .

And I could easily get to my phone before the answering machine kicks in. Even early in the morning.

So all it goes to show is we are all different and I don't see the point of going round this AGAIN , because there is no definitive answer.

I have never known a phone ring more than ten times when there is an answering machine. Today's automated answering phones on mobiles or via 1571 always come on between five and ten rings 

There is no way Jeremy would have made it to the phone before Neville left a message. He was 'sleeping like a log' (fact), upstairs (fact) with his bedroom door shut (perhaps).

[Jane]

I have never known a phone ring more than ten times when there is an answering machine. Today's automated answering phones on mobiles or via 1571 always come on between five and ten rings 

There is no way Jeremy would have made it to the phone before Neville left a message. He was 'sleeping like a log' (fact), upstairs (fact) with his bedroom door shut (perhaps).

Perhaps you should do a study of how answering machines functioned in the 1980's. Saying "There is no way Jeremy would have made it to the phone...................." is just your opinion.

[scipio_usmc]

Scipio, I have to ask. Time consuming as compared to WHAT? I suspect it is a normal 13 step straight stair case. He hadn't only JUST moved into the house so would have been totally au fait with moving around in it. I will agree that much "fudging" is done in two up, two downs but that is only likely to present difficulties to unsuspecting visitors. I can't argue about how many times a phone would ring before the answering device worked. Would it have been possible to have set it to ones own needs?

They described the stairs as cramped and difficult to navigate.  Thus they said he would not be able to fly down the stairs he would have to walk. 

[Jan]

I have never known a phone ring more than ten times when there is an answering machine. Today's automated answering phones on mobiles or via 1571 always come on between five and ten rings 

There is no way Jeremy would have made it to the phone before Neville left a message. He was 'sleeping like a log' (fact), upstairs (fact) with his bedroom door shut (perhaps).

that is not a fact - it is your opinion. It was a cottage , not a mansion with hundreds of stairs .

And on my old answering machine you could still answer it even if the machine had clicked in and as I don't know what the police found when they took the machine away , I unlike you are not going to make rash statements then claim them as fact.

[Jane]

They described the stairs as cramped and difficult to navigate.  Thus they said he would not be able to fly down the stairs he would have to walk.

Scipio, it was HIS home. THEY, whoever they are, may have found them difficult to navigate. The young home owner, whoever he/she may be would be unlikely to have the same problem.

[Jan]

Scipio, it was HIS home. THEY, whoever they are, may have found them difficult to navigate. The young home owner, whoever he/she may be would be unlikely to have the same problem.

wonder who "they" was

AE by any chance , she had an opinion on everything.

[Jane]

wonder who "they" was

AE by any chance , she had an opinion on everything.

Yes. VERY unlike Scipio to resort to "they"

[Alias]

wonder who "they" was

AE by any chance , she had an opinion on everything.

I think I remember it was Ann Eaton who said this, but don´t shoot me if I´m wrong!

[scipio_usmc]

I think I remember it was Ann Eaton who said this, but don´t shoot me if I´m wrong!

She certainly is one of "they".

[Adam]

Jeremy's actions after receiving Neville's phone call contradicts him being the sort of man to jump out of bed and rush to answer a 3am phone call. After eventually waking from sleeping 'like a log'.

His WS says he got Neville's call at 3.10am. But the police were not called until 3.26am. Even then he phoned a police station miles away. That was after phoning Julie. He then drove very slowly to WHF.

His laid back attitude even after hearing Neville's famous ten words,  suggests a man who would have ignored a ringing downstairs 3am phone call.

[Jan]

Jeremy's actions after receiving Neville's phone call contradicts him being the sort of man to jump out of bed and rush to answer a 3am phone call. After eventually waking from sleeping 'like a log'.

His WS says he got Neville's call at 3.10am. But the police were not called until 3.26am. Even then he phoned a police station miles away. That was after phoning Julie. He then drove very slowly to WHF.

His laid back attitude even after hearing Neville's famous ten words,  suggests a man who would have ignored a ringing downstairs 3am phone call.

Assumption.

[lookout]

 It could quite easily have been a wrong number when the phone rang----------the local taxi,which does,and must have happened in the past,so as a consequence you wouldn't be in such a hurry to answer it. Jeremy would have had no idea whatsoever that the call would be coming from his father.