Simon Ings

All successful spies need to be good actors

The ability to adopt a fictional persona, learn a script or improvise are as important in espionage as in the theatre, say Christopher Andrew and Julius Green

Greta Garbo as Mata Hari in the 1931 film directed by George Fitzmaurice. [Alamy] 
issue 18 December 2021

  • Stars and Spies: Intelligence Operations and the Entertainment Business

    Christopher Andrew and Julius Green

    The Bodley Head, pp. 512, £20

GIF Image

Disagree with half of it, enjoy reading all of it

TRY 3 MONTHS FOR $5
Our magazine articles are for subscribers only. Start your 3-month trial today for just $5 and subscribe to more than one view

Read next

Trending

Jonathan Sacerdoti

Nike’s ‘Never again’ slogan is a disgrace

Fifty-six thousand runners completing the London Marathon yesterday may well have gasped the words ‘never again’ as they staggered across the finish line. I have never been a runner, but I imagine that even those who willingly endure the 26.2-mile ordeal must feel not only a profound sense of accomplishment but also, at the very

More on acting

Also by Simon Ings

Latest

Comments

Join the debate for just £1 a month

Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for £3.

Already a subscriber? Log in