Secret History: Writing the rise of Britain's intelligence services

Download the podcast to hear Professor Simon Ball discuss his recent book 'Secret History: Writing the Rise of Britain's Intelligence Services'.

How did Britain’s intelligence agencies, famously fictionalized by Ian Fleming and John le Carré, rise to prominence in real life?

In Secret History: Writing the Rise of Britain’s Intelligence Services, Professor Simon Ball tells the story through the agencies’ own case histories, constructed internal narratives that shaped British intelligence culture and helped elevate MI5 and MI6 from small, scrappy agencies to the heart of the British state.

Simon Ball is a professor of international history and politics here in the School of History, and he joins host Richard Aldous of The American Interest publication to discuss his latest book.

Listen to the podcast to tune in for a fascinating discussion of espionage history!