James Bond is 50

Today is the 50th anniversary of the first James Bond film, Dr No, opening in cinemas. There are all sorts of celebrations going on, culminating with the release of the latest film, Skyfall, at the end of the month. In the meantime, here is an article from the Economist exploring why the Bond series has endured for so long.  There is lots of material over at the Guardian, where writers explain which films are their favourite (Nonsuch HP likes "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" best...) Finally, here is a rather more academic article on the relationship between James Bond and the Cold War by a professor from the Exeter University.

PS: If you're interested in a career in spying, have a look at this article, or even MI6's homepage - there are even some games to play to test your skills!

Eileen Nearne

Eileen Nearne, an 89 year old lady from Devon, never discussed what she did in the war, but after her death last week it was discovered that she had been a spy for the Special Operations Executive, assisting the French resistance. Aged 23 she was dropped into occupied France and worked as a courier and wireless operator. She was captured and 3 times by the Nazis but managed to escape every time. She was eventually sent to a concentration camp in Germany. On several occasions she was tortured but never revealed the names of her fellow agents. Asked how she coped in such a distressing situation she said, "You should not let yourself go. It seemed that the end would never come, but I have always believed in destiny and I had a hope. If you are a person who is drowning, you put all your efforts into trying to swim."

You can read more about her fascinating story here.

Spy Stories

The official history of MI6, the Secret Intelligence Service, has been published this week. Professor Keith Jeffery was given permission to investigate the archives from 1904-1949, examining MI6's actions in both World Wars and other conflicts, including the Russian Civil War. Jeffery investigates well known actions such as the Bletchley Park code-breaking operation in World War 2 and MI6's support of agents in the French Resistance. He also reveals that the Service helped to prevent a Communist revolution in Brazil in 1935, and employed a Lieutenant Augustus Agar in Russia during the Communist Revolution; he was meant to only support Russian agents, but got rather carried away and sank four Communist warships, which quickly blew his cover.

MI6 agents never had a "licence to kill" but they did have plenty of secret gadgets, such as a camera hidden in a matchbox, a pen that squirted tear gas, and a shaving brush with a secret compartment. These would provide inspiration for one MI6 officer, Ian Fleming, when he turned his hand to writing books about a fictional agent - James Bond.

More information can be found in this Guardian article and Channel 4 News Report (shown above), which includes comments from Sir John Scarlett, Head of MI6 (or "C") till last year. Channel 4 also recently had a fascinating interview with John Le Carre, the spy author who worked for MI6 until he was betrayed by the double agent, Kim Philby.

PS: Here is MI6's official website, where you can learn about their history and apply for a job!