Hi! I came across this case when watching countless unsolved mysteries videos on YouTube and it sparked a vague recollection of hearing the story many years ago, either from when he originally disappeared or possibly from some of the anniversary coverage in the first few years. Unfortunately, between those two points in time I had heard nothing about it which is a shame
Other stories Id looked into brought me here before so this is the first place I came to read about any developments etc and have tried to read all the linked articles that youve posted on this thread, but now Ive reached a point where I have signed up to see if there is any observations I can add and also ask the questions you guys have given me, so please forgive me if I mess up while finding my feet here. Im also thinking aloud a bit so will try to get my thoughts in some sort of order but Im sorry if I jump around a bit in the process.
-Some have asked why there has been no details/cctv image of the man that went to the police station, I would presume if they knew what he looked like they would have kept that quiet in case he returned and they could determine if it was the same guy or just someone bogus claiming to be. Good job on finding the mention of Shrewsbury though, I live not too far from there (although visit rarely) but I will certainly be more vigilant wherever I am as it suggest it might not just be confined to London areas.
-I tried, as I am sure many of you have already, looking into gigs/events going on in London on that day, but it kind of dawned on me that it may be unlikely that that was the case; the reason being that by all accounts he had very limited access and even less interest in computers/being online so I wonder how he would have found out about such upcoming events. I know that theres every possibility that he had more access than anyone realised, but still if he found out a band would be playing or something was taking place surely he would have mentioned it to SOMEONE even if he didnt discuss that he might head there on his own, especially as it seems he and at least his sister shared many of the same interests and were very close. I mean surely if you were excited enough at the prospect of seeing a band/book singing/youtube gathering or whatever it might have been to head across the country for it, you would be excited enough that you wouldnt be able to just carry on without saying a word to anyone else (even before youd come up with the idea of a secret mission to go there alone)! I feel like if you werent getting this info from online sources then to hear about them all the way up in Doncaster it would have to be word of mouth and someone would have remembered something.
-However the train ticket is something that sways me on that theory. When they say he refused to pay the extra 50p for a return, not just declined a return it gives the impression (and I think I might have actually read it somewhere) that the lady was quite insistent rather than it just being a passing suggestion. So why? I know if it was me and someone was being a bit pushy and didnt just take no thanks as an answer, for the sake of 50p extra I probably would have just said yes to (get her to shut up) *don't know how to do that crossing out what you really mean thing
* be polite, whether I had no intention of coming back or not! So why didnt he?
-Do Andrews parents actually know how much was in his savings account and how much he withdrew? I know there seem to be a few different figures floating around, is that because the parents made a rough guess on how much was there? Surely the police would have got those figures even if the parents couldnt get a statement or something. The reason I ask is because the 50p thing makes more sense to me if Andrew had a certain amount left after the train fare that he needed for something else and just that 50p would have left him short and defeated the purpose of him going there in the first place. Maybe an exact figure of how much he was left with would give a clue as to what his intentions were? Although that begs the question of how he planned to get home again if he had no return ticket and no money left if thats what he intended to do.....still I have done it myself where I was so focused on my outward journey and getting there on time that I didnt even consider the return journey until I was already miles away from home on a Sunday (and I was 28 with an 8 year old in toe :notgood: ) maybe he was going somewhere that he felt was worth the trouble he would face if he rang his parents and said he was in London with no money and needed their help to get home?!
-the other question I have about the savings is where did they come from? Was this birthday/Christmas money the same as he had left at home or had it come from a different source?
I realise this post is getting incredibly long so I will wait for any responses before I add anything else, but to the poster whos friend is convinced she saw him at Kings Cross, can you please just remind me when this was? Thank you.