Some good news for once…

He’s won a BAFTA, got a Knighthood and now he’s a millionaire!

Congratulations to Sir Alan Bates. This week the government confirmed he had finally reached a settlement. He had to fight hard for it, which is, of course, crazy. What he received is not a matter of record, though the BBC called it a “multi-million” pound payout and a source told Sky News it “may” be north of £4m, which seemed very odd. I have documented it all here.

Another piece of good news, 92-year old Betty Brown has also settled her claim. She too has been given the runaround by the Post Office and government, but has finally got 95% of what she claimed for. It is unconscionable that so many Subpostmasters, so late in life, have had to fight tooth and nail for what is rightfully theirs. Read about Betty’s ordeal on the BBC website.

Whilst it’s true that many people have settled their claims, there are many others who haven’t. After a previous secret email went out I received a howl of despair by return from one subscriber who is still going through the hell of trying to sort out their redress.

I know there are many people – from high profile long-serving campaigners to those who were unable to even think about coming forward until after the drama – who are still stuck limbo, being forced to justify and justify and justify everything endlessly. Hopefully Betty and Sir Alan’s stories will bring some hope.

Glitch goes on tour

Glitch, one of the three theatre productions I have seen about the Post Office scandal (the others being False Accounts and Make Good: the Post Office scandal musical) is going on tour in 2026.

Glitch focuses on Pam Stubbs’ experience at her branch in Barkham, near Wokingham. I saw it at Reading University’s Minghella Theatre last year and was honoured to take Pam along to see it.

Various other survivors of this scandal pop up in the story – Sir Alan, obviously, but also Seema Misra, Janet Skinner and Tracy Felstead. It was a joy to be reunited with the Limb 2 Ladies at the premiere – read all about that on my blog here and book tickets for the 2026 tour here.

Rab Thomson

Rab Thomson, a lovely man who in April launched a campaign to help Scottish victims of the Post Office scandal, has a new battle to fight. Not long after his conviction was quashed Rab was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He has decided to open up about it to the Daily Record in Scotland, and – being Rab – has now become a campaigner to persuade men not to ignore the signs which might indicate a problem. You can read about it here.

I sat on stage with Rab at an event at Dumfries House earlier this year. He spoke about his experience of being a Subpostmaster which led to a conviction for embezzlement.

When he talked about the effect his fall from grace had on his mam, it was deeply moving. I am sure we all wish Rab the very best for both his Post Office and Prostate campaigns and hope he is able to lead them for some time to come.

Refund thanks

Thank you to everyone who graciously accepted a refund on my forthcoming book now it is apparent that it will not be published for another few months. I think there were ten in all – most of whom were apologetic about it! No need to be whatsoever. It has been a while to wait.

Thank you also to everyone who told us they were sticking with it – sending messages of support and perseverance to me and Bath Publishing over the last week. Hopefully when the book does finally arrive the wait will make it all the sweeter.

The refund offer will stay in place until we have a firm and definite publication date, so if you change your mind or your circumstances change between now and then, please do get in touch with Bath Publishing (info@bathpublishing.co.uk or 01225 577810) to sort things out.

I have actually spent some time away from the book to work on a Post Office piece for the Mail on Sunday (which may not now appear until next year) and a Times profile of the gender-critical feminist Sara Morrison whose discrimination case goes to tribunal in Belfast on Monday. The latter should appear in the paper tomorrow.

I may be covering her case next week, depending on the interest, but I’ll get my nose back to the book grindstone soon enough. The delay to the publication of the Inquiry report does make things easier to manage in some respects. It’s just that more stuff – such as Sir Alan and Betty’s settlements – keep happening!

The delay will also allow me hopefully to include a little more about Lee Castleton’s claim against Fujitsu and the Post Office, which I feel might come to the fore again soon.

Have a great weekend

Nick

I am (still) writing a new book about the Post Office scandal called The Great Post Office Cover-Up. You can put your money down now for a copy which will arrive after Sir Wyn Williams’ final report. Buying a pre-publication copy of the hardback (£15 + P&P) or paperback (£10 + P&P) will be cheaper than the post publication price, help support an independent publisher (by buying direct) and offer you the opportunity to join my secret email mailing list. For more info about the book, click here!