#348 | The Cambridge Five Part III | Beer & Betrayal
English Learning for Curious Minds
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The Downfall of the Cambridge Five
In May 1951, Kim Filby received a telegram that set in motion the start of the end for the Cambridge Five. Guy Burgess was one of the five high flying Cambridge graduates who had gone on to become a double agent for the Soviets. They had passed literally thousands of documents full of classified material to the Soviets - everything from nuclear secrets to the identities of British spies working in Europe. Part of this complacency and sloppiness can be traced back to alcohol. Though Burgess was known as the biggest drinker of the lot, the heaviest drinker, McLean II had descended into a downward spiral of alcoholism after being transferred to Cairo.
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