The Master Spy: The Story of Kim Philby

by Phillip Knightley

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0394578902
• ISBN13: 9780394578903
• Release Date: March 1989
• Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
• Length: 292 Pages
• Weight: 1.53 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Philby, 101A

This outstanding portrayal of Harold Adrian Russell Philby, honourable Westminster schoolboy, Cambridge graduate, war correspondent for The Times of London in the Spanish Civil War, respected colleague and head of Section V (Spain & Portugal); & later Section IX (anti-Soviet section) of the British Secret Intelligence Service, and successful Soviet penetration agent, or mole, in the same service, is not for anyone approaching the topic for the first time. Because of the complexity of the subject, it would be better to begin with the BBC DVD "Cambridge Spies," then John Fisher's "Burgess and Maclean," Seale & McConville's "Philby, The Long Road to Moscow," Penrose and Freeman's "Conspiracy of Silence," and Knightley's "The Second Oldest Profession" as a prelude, in order to familiarize oneself with the complex issues as well as the multifarious cast of characters. [Then read Philby's "My Silent War" & the rest of the vast corpus of literature on the topic.]. I first read this book several years ago and have come back to it three times. With each reading I become more appreciative of Phillip Knightly's dedication to the subject as well as his objectivity. In the last years of his life, Philby--known to his colleagues as Kim--invited Mr. Knightley, a respected investagative journalist of The Sunday Times, to do a series of interviews in Moscow, where the spy had been living since he escaped from Beirut in 1963. Philby explained that the KGB wanted Graham Greene to interview him, but since Greene was a friend and former colleague in SIS, Philby believed that Knightley would me more objective, and therefore, less suspect as an interviewer. As Knightley notes (p. 4), Philby's answers were verifiable by the archives of the various security services on both sides of the Cold War, and that Philby stipulated the ground rules in advance: that if the topic focused on "operational matters" of either service, he would not answer; he would answer other quetions as truthfully as possible, and that if he didn't know the answers to a question he would say so. There were those who felt that by interviewing Kim Philby, Phillip Knightly was being used as a tool of the KGB. Knightly himself, however, jumped at the chance to do the interview, explaining that "anything Philby said . . . would contribute something to our understanding of the man and his motives" and that if one is to learn from history, "the more we can learn from Philby affair the better" (5-6). Phillip Knightly concludes that no matter what one might think about the man who betrayed his country "for what he believed to the last were impeccable motives," in the final estimation, the fact remains that "professionally, as a spy, [Kim Philby was] in a class all by himself" (6). Phillip Knightley's "Philby: KGB Masterspy," demonstrates this proposition admirably. (The page numbers in this review refer to the 2003 edition, published in the UK by Andre Deutsch.)

Philby, 101A

This outstanding portrayal of Harold Adrian Russell Philby, honourable Westminster schoolboy, Cambridge graduate, war correspondent for The Times of London in the Spanish Civil War, respected colleague and head of Section V (Spain & Portugal); & later Section IX (anti-Soviet section) of the British Secret Intelligence Service, and successful Soviet penetration agent, or mole, in the same service, is not for anyone approaching the topic for the first time. Because of the complexity of the subject, it would be better to begin with the BBC DVD "Cambridge Spies," then John Fisher's "Burgess and Maclean," Seale & McConville's "Philby, The Long Road to Moscow," Penrose and Freeman's "Conspiracy of Silence," and Knightley's "The Second Oldest Profession" as a prelude, in order to familiarize oneself with the complex issues as well as the multifarious cast of characters. [Then read Philby's "My Silent War" & the rest of the vast corpus of literature on the topic.]. I first read this book several years ago and have come back to it three times. With each reading I become more appreciative of Phillip Knightly's dedication to the subject as well as his objectivity. In the last years of his life, Philby--known to his colleagues as Kim--invited Mr. Knightley, a respected investagative journalist of The Sunday Times, to do a series of interviews in Moscow, where the spy had been living since he escaped from Beirut in 1963. Philby explained that the KGB wanted Graham Greene to interview him, but since Greene was a friend and former colleague in SIS, Philby believed that Knightley would me more objective, and therefore, less suspect as an interviewer. As Knightley notes (p. 4), Philby's answers were verifiable by the archives of the various security services on both sides of the Cold War, and that Philby stipulated the ground rules in advance: that if the topic focused on "operational matters" of either service, he would not answer; he would answer other quetions as truthfully as possible, and that if he didn't know the answers to a question he would say so. There were those who felt that by interviewing Kim Philby, Phillip Knightly was being used as a tool of the KGB. Knightly himself, however, jumped at the chance to do the interview, explaining that "anything Philby said . . . would contribute something to our understanding of the man and his motives" and that if one is to learn from history, "the more we can learn from Philby affair the better" (5-6). Phillip Knightly concludes that no matter what one might think about the man who betrayed his country "for what he believed to the last were impeccable motives," in the final estimation, the fact remains that "professionally, as a spy, [Kim Philby was] in a class all by himself" (6). Phillip Knightley's "Philby: KGB Masterspy," demonstrates this proposition admirably. (The page numbers in this review refer to the 2003 edition, published in the UK by Andre Deutsch.)

A VERY GOOD BIBLIOGRAPHY OF KIM PHILBY

This is about Kim Philby's life. (really Harlord Adrian Russel Philby)He lived from 1912-1988. He worked for British Intelligence from 1944-46 as head of anti-Communist counter-espionage. He also became secretary of the British embassy in Washington and worked with the CIA from 1949-1951. He later worked as a journalist in Beirut and in 1963 disappeared. It was later discovered he had moved to Russia where he had been granted citizenship. It is book you are going to find lots of details about Philby's life . This book is very useful for people who are interested in Kim Philby.