I have every sympathy for the family - DM sad-face pictures aside. As members of this forum we possibly forget or don't realise how uninformed others can be about flying.
People assume rightly or wrongly that checked luggage will be there when they get off just as if they took a National Express bus trip.
I can see how their trip would have felt ruined if they had used half their spending money to buy clothes and other essentials, and given BA's refund timeframes there may be no imminent refund of that outlay.
They don't appear to be rolling in money so perhaps they were able to get a dollar or two from the tabloids for the story (I gladly have no idea how these things work), either way it benefits them as it guarantees their issue will be dealt with speedily.
I hope their holiday becomes a happy memory and others learn from this - including BA. I am uneasy about the acceptance on this forum that BA are hopeless and not worth haranguing once luggage is missing or delayed. I think we can have a responsibility to ensure they lift their game, seeing as how anecdotal evidence shows other airlines are capable of good CS re delayed luggage.