Daily MirrorKate McCann vows never to return to Portugal as husband Gerry is heckledExclusive by Martin Fricker 6/04/2009
It's the place where she last saw her daughter alive, but Kate McCann has declared she will never return to Praia da Luz.
The 40-year-old made the heartbreaking decision as husband Gerry went back to the Portuguese resort for the first time since Madeleine vanished.
Heart surgeon Gerry was heckled by angry villagers who blame the youngster’s disappearance for job losses in the resort after a dip in visitors.
Kate stayed at home with four-year-old twins Sean and Amelie as her husband oversees filming of a reconstruction of the night Madeleine went missing nearly two years ago. A friend said: “Kate is never going to go back. It’s just too hard for her.”
Gerry, who is being trailed by Channel 4 for the documentary, yesterday said prayers for Madeleine, five, at Our Lady of Light church where he and Kate sought solace when she disappeared.
He has also visited the apartment at the Ocean Club resort from where she vanished.
The friend said: “He managed to hold things together but it was still hard for him to be in there.” But some locals turned on the 40-year-old after 21 of the 48 staff were axed at the resort. Bosses claim the number of visitors has fallen since Madeleine disappeared and the recession has made things worse.
One former worker shouted at Gerry: “Go home, leave us alone.” A sacked cleaner said: “We’re fed up with Mr McCann. We want him to disappear for good from this place.”
Fresh appeal posters in the town have been damaged.
The McCanns’ spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: “People are entitled to their opinions but all we’re trying to do is find a missing child.
“This trip has not been easy for Gerry.
“Where is the humanity in daubing paint over a picture of Madeleine? Gerry will stop at nothing to find Madeleine or at least discover what happened to her, no matter how difficult and painful it is. He and Kate still believe Madeleine is alive.”
Accompanying Gerry on the trip were two of the friends who were with the family at the time – Jane Tanner and Matthew Oldfield.
In the TV re-enactment, Madeleine will be played by the daughter of a family friend who lives in Portugal.
Kate will be played by American mum-of-three Lisa Donovan, who bears a striking resemblance to the former GP. Lisa, 40, who now lives in the UK, said: “It’s emotional to play someone who’s been through such a heart-wrenching experience.”
