Lady in red
I am sitting in Northampton Square, Islington at lunch time eating a sandwich of cotton wool bread and stale chicken. It is a quiet area of grass dotted with a few flowerbeds and surrounded by wrought iron railings. In the middle is something like a bandstand and next to it a woman in a red hooded coat with a patchwork bag is talking to a blonde woman in a grey coat. The woman in red is smoking a cigarette on which she draws occasionally. The scene has the hall marks of a John Le Carré novel. Any moment I expect the woman in red to sit down beside me and give me a coded message: “The daffodils are blooming in St Petersburg.†But she did not – she just stubbed out her cigarette and moved off.
I am sitting in Northampton Square, Islington at lunch time eating a sandwich of cotton wool bread and stale chicken. It is a quiet area of grass dotted with a few flowerbeds and surrounded by wrought iron railings. In the middle is something like a bandstand and next to it a woman in a red hooded coat with a patchwork bag is talking to a blonde woman in a grey coat. The woman in red is smoking a cigarette on which she draws occasionally. The scene has the hall marks of a John Le Carré novel. Any moment I expect the woman in red to sit down beside me and give me a coded message: 'The daffodils are blooming in St Petersburg.' But she did not '“ she just stubbed out her cigarette and moved off.
So, where is Northampton Square? Why am I interrupting your time recorded day to write about it?
A few months ago I wrote enthusiastically about a book called Flat Earth News by Nick Davies (see 'Driven to distraction', Solicitors Journal 153/33, 8 September 2009). Some time afterwards, I discovered that Davies runs master classes in investigative reporting and, not having anything better to do on a dreary February Saturday, I signed up to attend '“ at the City University in Northampton Square.
And it was fascinating. The course was presented by Nick Davies and David Leigh, both veteran investigative reporters who have in their time uncovered all manner of scandal and wrong doing, including sex trafficking of children, Jonathan Aitken and BAE.
The world of investigative reporting is nearer than you might think to legal practice. It is mostly hard slog and painstaking examination of documents. Clandestine meetings with whistleblowers are rare but they do happen '“ usually after a story has broken.
Not many of us are likely to bring down governments (except by voting them out) but there are many parallels to investigative journalism. We need evidence before we can prove cases. If it is a straightforward traffic accident, you may not need special forensic skills but it is surprising how often we do have to work at getting evidence.
We were taken at break-neck speed through the murky world of corruption, intrigue and espionage and given an insight into how the misdeeds of government, big business and individuals are unmasked, beginning with: how do you get witnesses to speak to you? That is a problem we have all faced. Ask the average person whether they would like to make a statement to a reporter or a lawyer and the chances are the answer will be: 'Neither.'
Tricks of the trade
Davies recounted how, as a young reporter, he was asked to interview the widow of a footballer who had dropped dead on the pitch. How could he persuade her to talk in those circumstances? The answer was simple: 'I have come to write a tribute to your husband.' Once she was talking, she revealed that there was an important story because the footballer had been ill and had just been certified as fit to play, so he was able to produce a story that was much more than a tribute.
Copyright & permissions
