But, as with The Colour of Justice (which dealt with the death of Stephen Lawrence, Norton-Taylorr has given the inquiry a dramatic shape so that it gradually reveals the appalling truth.
We have given the inquiry an opportunity to meet us.
London only gave the inquiry full support after Russia attacked Ukraine.
She said they had little information to give the inquiry about sexual assaults but were extremely upset about them.
As we report today, Ms May herself may be sympathetic to giving the inquiry greater powers, but we can understand the private reservations of her colleagues.
Jacob Kohnstamm, chairman of the European Commission's data-protection panel, said that regulators in Canada and some Asian countries had participated in the investigation, in an effort to give the inquiry an intercontinental scope.
Nonetheless he said, the evidence he gave the inquiry yesterday was wrong: "I gave this matter thought… I gave yesterday my best recollection of that, which clearly was mistaken… I certainly regret that," he said.
The Guardian gave the inquiry a whole page under the headline, a quote from Desmond: So we got 38 Madeleine articles wrong – but what about the 65 we got right?
In her letter to current panel members, which has been seen by the BBC, Mrs May said she was considering three options to give the inquiry more powers.
This was why she had written to panel members last month, she said, to set out three options being considered to give the inquiry full statutory powers.
Home Secretary Theresa May has written to panel members saying three options to give the inquiry full statutory powers are being considered.
