A Spy Among Friends
A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal is an absorbing look at one of the 20th century’s most notorious double agent scandals. The paperback edition is now available.
Kim Philby was one of the most successful spies of the Soviet Era. He was the linchpin of a group of Soviet double agents recruited from among the upper class Brits at Cambridge University in the ‘30s. He went on to a lengthy career at MI6, the UK’s foreign espionage agency (equivalent to the U.S. CIA). The entire time he passed damaging British and American intelligence secrets to the Soviets, resulting in hundreds, if not thousands, of deaths.
In A Spy Among Friends, author Ben Macintyre looks at Philby’s story through the lens of his close friendships, particularly with fellow MI6 agent Nicholas Elliott. On paper, Philby and Elliott were very alike: from the same social set with similar family and educational backgrounds. While Elliott was a dedicated British patriot, Philby’s first allegiance was to his Soviet masters.
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A Spy Among Friends traces Philby’s journey from his days at Cambridge, where he first embraced leftist ideology, his initiation into spying for the Soviets, his days as a journalist in the Spanish Civil War and then his long service in MI6, from World War II through the Cold War. Macintyre does a strong job of painting a portrait of Philby as a charismatic and compelling presence whose demeanor and personality were inviting and ingratiating. How he easily drew numerous people into his orbit, either as sources of information or as Soviet recruits. Philby’s success emerges as a product of both his astonishing people skills and a lot of very good luck (for him, not his victims).
Elliott gets a lot of the spotlight, as well, and A Spy Among Friends also delves into some of Philby’s other interpersonal relationships (most notably Jim Angleton, a cultured American and important figure in the early CIA). The contradictions of Philby’s run make for compelling reading. The very system Philby claimed to want to overthrow, Britain’s strict class system, marked by clubs, schools and social groups, protected him and allowed him to operate for as long as he did. And while Philby betrayed his friends on an almost constant basis, those friendships seemed to matter to him on a personal level. A fascinating psychological portrait emerges of a man who was thoroughly British and yet showed no remorse in betraying his country in the worst ways.
Macintyre gives readers a good look at the various British institutions so instrumental to Philby’s story. Early MI6 emerges as an “old boys” club with little accountability. They circled the wagons around Philby in the early ‘50s when accusations against him first emerged. While Philby was forced out of the service for a few years, Elliott eventually succeeded in bringing Philby back into MI6’s orbit for a few additional years of spying and betrayal. A Spy Among Friends does an excellent job of exploring those bonds and that unique brand of English friendship. The Philby/Elliott relationship is a strong, interesting perspective from which to explore this story. It adds a personal angle that elevates events above the cloak and dagger intrigue of its details. Locating Philby’s humanity amplifies the impact of his monstrous deeds. The final meeting between Elliott and Philby, after Elliott finally accepted the truth about his friend, was suffused with drama and underlying tension. The build-up of the duo’s decades of friendship gave the confrontation a quiet power.
Macintyre has written several excellent books about 20th century war and espionage. His style is fluid and eminently readable. He has a gift for locating the compelling heart of a story that gives nonfiction the narrative momentum of fiction. And for building suspense, even though readers already know the outcome.
A Spy Among Friends is a strong addition to Macintyre’s body of work and an essential read for anyone interested in 20th century espionage or the Cold War.
Originally published at thunderalleybcpcom.ipage.com on June 29, 2015.
