The Running Grave — страница 3 из 179

Furthermore, it is highly defamatory to describe the church as a ‘cult’ or to suggest that its members are ‘brainwashed’. All members of the UHC attend the church of their own free will and are able to leave at any time.

In conclusion…


Emails between ex-UHC member Mr Kevin Pirbright and Sir Colin Edensor

Kevin Pirbright

20 March 2013

Lawyer’s letter from UHC

To: Sir Colin Edensor

Dear Colin,

This morning I got a lawyer’s letter from the UHC ordering me to take down my blog or they’ll make me pay, take me to court etc etc, the usual thing they do to all ex-members. Good! I want this to get into court. But I haven’t got money for a lawyer so I wondered if you could help me as I don’t think you can get legal aid for defamation. I’m doing this for all the brainwashed, including Will. Light has to be shone on what these bastards are doing.

The book’s going really well. Plus, everything they’re doing against me right now is just adding new chapters!

Best,

Kevin

Sir Colin Edensor

20 March 2013

Re: Lawyer’s letter from UHC

To: Kevin Pirbright

Dear Kevin,

I’d be delighted to help with lawyers’ fees. I recommend my own lawyers, Rentons, who are already aware of the UHC’s nefarious activities with regards to our son. Keep me posted on developments and very good news that the book’s going well. I think it will make a big difference.

Sincerely,

Colin


An excerpt of an interview with actress Noli Seymour in Zeitgeist magazine, January 2014

I ask about the two small Chinese characters tattooed just beneath Seymour’s left ear: new additions to her already extensive collection of body art.

‘Oh, I got them done last month. They mean “Jïnzi”; “gold”, in English. It’s a reference to the Golden Prophet of the Universal Humanitarian Church.’

I’d been told that Seymour won’t be answering questions on her membership of the controversial UHC, but as she’s brought it up, I ask what she makes of persistent negative rumours about the church.

‘That isn’t something Noli wants to discuss,’ says Seymour’s PR man, but his client ignores him.

‘Oh, please,’ she says, rolling those dazzling baby blues. ‘There’s something SO sinister about wanting to help the homeless and give kids who’re carers a holiday, right? Seriously: do people not have better things to do than bash a place that does nothing but good?

‘Genuinely,’ she says, leaning towards me for the first time, looking earnest, ‘the Universal Humanitarian Church is, like, the most progressive religion of all time. It’s all integrated. It looks for universality, because that’s what life is, and humanity is: the search for oneness and wholeness. That’s one of the things that really attracts me about it. It’s like, there are fragments of truth in all religions, but until we get a synthesis, we won’t see it. So you get massive diversity there. We study every and any Holy Book. You should come to a meeting. Tons of people come out of curiosity and, like, never leave.’

Not entirely to my surprise, Seymour’s PR man intervenes at this point, reminding Noli that we’re here to discuss her latest movie.


Emails between Sir Colin Edensor and his lawyer David Renton

Sir Colin Edensor

27 May 2014

Will Edensor trust fund

To: David Renton

Dear David,

I apologise for becoming heated on our call this morning. As I know you appreciate, this whole situation is taking its toll, particularly in light of Sally’s recent diagnosis.

I fully appreciate that Will is over-age and that he’s refusing to submit to a further psychiatric assessment, but I’m frustrated by the chicken and egg situation in which we find ourselves. You say there are no grounds on which a judge would currently rule Will to be mentally unfit. He joined a dangerous cult and cut off all contact with family and former friends. Surely this, in and of itself, is proof that he’s unstable and provides grounds for a further assessment.

The mere fact that Dr Andy Zhou is a Principal in the UHC ought to disqualify him from treating or assessing members of the church. I appreciate that Zhou remains a practising psychologist, but one would think Zhou’s membership of the UHC represents at best a glaring conflict of interest when it comes to assessing the mental health of vulnerable church members in possession of large trust funds.

As you know, I was overruled at the meeting of Will’s trustees on Thursday, where the majority view was that there are no legal grounds on which to withhold funds from him. This brings the total sum of money that Will has taken out of his trust since joining the UHC to £95k. I don’t believe Will ever had any intention of putting a deposit on a house or buying a car, because he’s still living at Chapman Farm and there’s no evidence of him taking driving lessons.

As I told you on the phone, Kevin Pirbright is willing to testify in court that wealthy individuals such as Will are given template letters to copy out in their own handwriting when applying for funds. Nobody who knows Will could possibly believe he wrote the last two letters sent to the Board of Trustees himself. I also note that he doesn’t mention the Drowned Prophet when it’s a question of getting his hands on cash.

I’d appreciate any advice on how to break through the impasse in which we find ourselves. I believe Sally’s illness has been caused by the stress of the last two years and we both remain desperately concerned about our son.

Yours,

Colin


David Renton

27 May 2014

Re: Will Edensor trust fund

To: Sir Colin Edensor

Dear Colin,

Thank you for this. I completely understand that this is an immensely stressful situation for you and Sally, and you have my sincere sympathy, especially in the light of Sally’s recent diagnosis.

While you and I might have doubts and questions about the Universal Humanitarian Church, it is a legally registered entity and has never been successfully prosecuted.

Unfortunately, I have concerns about Kevin Pirbright’s credibility if we bring him before a judge. He’s already been forced to retract inaccuracies in his blog posts about the UHC, and some of his allegations about the church strain credulity, particularly his accounts of the Manifestation of Prophets, which he continues to attribute to supernatural causes.

If you know of any other ex-UHC members who could be persuaded to testify as to the use of coercive control, template letters and so forth, I think we might have a case, but I’m afraid I think your chances are very slim if you proceed with Kevin as your sole witness.

I’m sorry for this gloomy prognosis, Colin. If you can track down further ex-church members, I’ll be glad to rethink.

Best, David


An excerpt of an interview with author Giles Harmon, ClickLit magazine, February 2015

CL: Some readers have seen a really profound shift in your thinking on religion in this latest novel.

GH: It isn’t really a shift at all. It’s a development, an evolution. I’m merely a few steps further along the path than I was previously. All that’s happened is that I’ve stumbled upon a unique way of meeting what I feel is the universal need for the divine, which doesn’t bring in its wake any of the attendant evils of traditional religions.

CL: You’ll be donating all royalties from One Holy Dawn to the Universal Humanitarian Church?

GH: I will, yes. I’ve been deeply impressed by the change the UHC has made in the lives of many, many vulnerable people.

CL: There was an incident at your first reading, where an ex-member of the UHC was escorted from the venue. Can you comment on that?

GH: The police told me the poor man’s quite seriously mentally ill, but I don’t know any more than that.

CL: Are you aware of the public comments Sir Colin Edensor has made about the UHC? Specifically, that it’s a cult?

GH: That’s pure nonsense. I can hardly conceive of any group less like a cult. The place is littered with intelligent professional people – doctors, writers, teachers – and the whole ethos is to freely inquire into any and all philosophies and belief systems, including atheism. I’d encourage any open-minded, intelligent person disillusioned with traditional religion to drop in on a UHC meeting, because I think they might be very surprised by what they find there.


Emails between Sir Colin Edensor and Kevin Pirbright

Sir Colin Edensor

2 March 2015

Giles Harmon’s Reading

To: Kevin Pirbright

Dear Kevin,

I was extremely unhappy to read about your behaviour at Giles Harmon’s book reading. I’m mystified as to how you think it will help any of us for you to stand up in public and start hurling abuse at a respected author. Given that they also publish Harmon, I wouldn’t be surprised if Roper Chard terminated your contract.

Colin


Kevin Pirbright

20 March 2015

Re: Giles Harmon’s Reading

To: Sir Colin Edensor

If you’d been there you’d understand exactly why I stood up and told Harman what I thought of him. These fucking rich pricks like him and Noli Seymour never see what happens at Chapman Farm. They’re being used as recruitment tools and they’re too fucking dumb and arrogant to realise it.

The book’s stalled, so Roper Chard will probably drop me anyway. I’m dealing with a lot of stuff I think I repressed. There was a night when all the kids were given drinks that I now think must have been drugged. I’m having nightmares about the punishments. There are also big stretches of time where I can’t remember anything.