Patrick Seale (1930–2014)

The first question, is whether this WAS an attempted revolution, or just an out pouring of dissatisfaction with 'business as normal'.

If it were a revolution, the demands seem to be unfocussed. Different groups all wanting something different and, as so often with the left, no one willing to compromise. The right aligned behind de Gaulle whilst the superior numbers fought for a bigger piece of the pie.

This book was written hot upon the heels of the revolt and asks the question as to whether it was a one off, or the beginning of Capitalism's demise. We now know the answer to that and, it sometimes feels, as if there will never be another great change in politics. Certainly, British politics is sewn up by blue and red Tories.

If change doesn't come - and quickly - Capitalism will have the pride of being civilisation's last ruling system. We will die out on an over heated planet... but, hey, some people will have very healthy bank accounts, so it's not all bad news!… (plus d'informations)

Patrick Seale and Maureen McConville have written a thorough and well-balanced account of the life and times of Kim Philby, arguably the KGB's most successful penetration agent. Their book, written several years after Page, Leitch and Knightley's "Philby: the Spy Who Betrayed a Generation," has the advantage of a keen perspective, perhaps gained by the passage of time. The book is especially enlightening about the political climate in the 'thirties and the ferment that made Cambridge University such a potent recruiting ground for the Communist movement. The authors, in fact, highlight an essential tragic irony, since Kim Philby apparently had a choice whether to attend Christ Church College, Oxford, or Trinity College, Cambridge. As they observe: "Had Kim gone up to Oxford he might never have become a Russian spy." (p.19) As the authors inform us in their forward (p. xiii), their aim is objectivity, to demythologize rather than demonize Philby, divorcing him from the usual caricature of the insidious "viper . . . in the trusting bosom of his country," who betrayed his class as well as his nation. By considering the "ordinary man" in the "extraordinary situation" of his historical moment, they enable the reader to understand why Kim Philby made the irrevocable ideological choice to travel the long and increasingly lonely road to Moscow.… (plus d'informations)

England, Rusland, fra 1930'erne til 1990'erne
Vi følger Kim Philby fra tidlig barndom til han er hoppet af til russerne.

Indeholder kapitlerne: "List of Illustrations", "Acknowledgements", "Foreword", "1. The Mistake of Being Right", "2. Loss of Innocence", "3. The Student Soviet", "4. Red Vienna", "5. Mild-mannered Desperado", "6. Graduation in Spain", "7. Miss Marks & Spencer", "8. Britain's Secret Service", "9. The Golf Club and Chess Society", "10. Bureaucrat of Intelligence", "11. The Microbe in the Blood", "12. Beaten by the Intercepts", "13. The Recidivist", "14. The Beachcomber", "15. Endgame", "16. Russian Pensioner", "17. Epilogue", "Index".

"List of Illustrations" giver lidt information om de 13 billeder, der findes indeni bogen.
"Acknowledgements" handler om de mange, der har hjulpet forfatterne med informationer.
"Foreword" handler om forfatternes syn på Kim Philby og hvordan de mener han bør bedømmes.
"1. The Mistake of Being Right" handler om Kim Philby's far, Harry St John Bridger Philby. Sønnen blev navngivet Harold Adrian Russell Philby, men fik hurtigt Kim som kaldenavn. Faderen var meget overbevist om sine egne fortræffeligheder, hvillket bragte ham på kant med statsadministrationen, hvor han ellers var ansat. I stedet blev han forretningsmand og rådgiver for diverse arabiske herskere. Han havde store forventninger til Kim, som også indfriede dem ved at vinde stipendier i skolen.
"2. Loss of Innocence" handler om ???
"3. The Student Soviet" handler om ???
"4. Red Vienna" handler om ???
"5. Mild-mannered Desperado" handler om ???
"6. Graduation in Spain" handler om ???
"7. Miss Marks & Spencer" handler om ???
"8. Britain's Secret Service" handler om ???
"9. The Golf Club and Chess Society" handler om ???
"10. Bureaucrat of Intelligence" handler om ???
"11. The Microbe in the Blood" handler om ???
"12. Beaten by the Intercepts" handler om ???
"13. The Recidivist" handler om ???
"14. The Beachcomber" handler om ???
"15. Endgame" handler om ???
"16. Russian Pensioner" handler om ???
"17. Epilogue" handler om ???
"Index" er et opslagsregister.

Interessant bog. Se også Spycatcher for lidt om hvordan hans kollegaer så på ham. Filmen Johnny English Reborn har chefen for MI 7 forsynet med en kat ved navn Philby. Johnny English kommer til at skubbe katten ud af vinduet, men han lader som om han står og holder den. Chefen, Pamela Thornton (Pegasus), er imponeret: "Philby lader aldrig fremmede samle ham op". Eller på engelsk: "I'm impressed. Philby never lets strangers pick him up." Tø, hø.… (plus d'informations)