Jason King returns to the Spybrary Podcast for his annual Christmas address to share his favourite spy books of 2020 as well as what he is looking forward to in 2021. This is the most requested feature of Spybrary, requested by spouses, friends, and relatives who purchase Christmas presents for loved ones based on the Jason King picks. (I kid you not!) Also on this episode of the Spybrary Podcast, Jason King and Spybrary Host Shane Whaley discuss: The legacy of John le Carré (A round table discussion in 2021 is planned but we could not resist the opportunity to chat about the spy books of John le Carré. Why Jason King lovess the Spy TV show , le Bureau! Jason shares his top 3 favorite books of 2020. What spy books, movie and tv is Jason looking forward to in 2021. What does Jason look for in a good book - advice for budding spy book writers. And Much More!!! Jason King's 2020 Picks are: The Stranger by Simon Conway Box 88 by Charles Cumming The Englishman by David Gilman

Jeff Quest (Spywrite) chats with the author of Paranoid Visions, Joseph Oldham. Paranoid Visions explores the history of the spy and conspiracy genres on British television, from 1960s Cold War series through 1980s conspiracy dramas to contemporary ‘war on terror’ thrillers. It analyses classic dramas including Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Edge of Darkness, A Very British Coup, and Spooks. This book will be an invaluable resource for television scholars interested in a new perspective on the history of television drama and intelligence scholars seeking an analysis of the popular representation of espionage with a strong political focus, as well as fans of cult British television and general readers interested in British cultural history.

Tonight we report the sad news that John le Carre has passed away. Jeff Quest of Spywrite recorded this episode in 2019 looking at the life of John le Carre. Spybrary host Shane Whaley announces a special upcoming episode of Spybrary where he will broadcast your tributes to John le Carre. Record your tributes to John le Carre here.

'An espionage thriller from the golden age of such outings.'  Today we decode a brush pass transmission sent in by Spybrary listener Andy Onyx. Andy gives us his brush pass spy movie review of The Internecine Project. 'According to the dictionary, internecine means destructive to both sides in a conflict. So let's just hold that thought with the rhythm of its syllables in the three-word title the internecine project, which lets us know what we're in for. An espionage thriller from the golden age of such outings.

We are joined today by spy author C P Bennison, author of Parallel Shadows which reveals how, in 1930s London, two young secretaries became spies for opposing sides. Against the backdrop of the Second World War, and subsequently the Cold War, the novel fictionalizes the true stories of Olga Grey, who became an MI5 double agent, and Letty Norwood, who was a major spy for the Soviet Union. This is the Spybrary Tea Break - short interviews with spy authors.

Today we decode a brush pass transmission sent in by Spybrary listener Andy Onyx. He gives us his brush pass spy book review of Rage by Simon Conway. Jonah Said is a man with nowhere left to run. Hunted, haunted, and bearing the horrific scars of a life spent on the frontline of some of the world's bloodiest battlefields, he's not what you'd call a model soldier. That's why the British Army has shipped him to the Zone—a lawless strip of desert between Iraq and Kuwait where everything is for sale and nothing is what it seems. From the moment he lands, Jonah is in over his head. Drawn into a ruthless world of corruption, he's about to learn that in the Zone, life is cheap…and the truth is deadly..

Day of the Jackal meets The Wicker Man. Author Andy Onyx joins us on our Spybrary Tea Break to share more about his latest book The Glimmer Girl. In the earliest days of World War One, a fateful meeting between Commander Smith-Cumming, Chief of the Secret Service Bureau and a mysterious stranger, results in a diabolical bargain. Stricken by events that follow , the Commander seizes an opportunity for atonement and vengeance by initiating Operation BARBELL, the outcome of which will echo long into the next century. London, the near future: The world is gripped by the cryptic threat of the elusive Eighth Day movement, a seemingly benign cult readying themselves to take internal action to destabilise the current world order. Determined to foil the movement's scheme, the Secret Intelligence Service selected a gifted recruit, Siobhan Uhuru-Behan, for their reactivated BARBELL project, a mysterious and clandestine cell dedicated to threats of an unexplained nature. Code-named GLIMMER , Siobhan is tasked with investigating and disrupting Eighth Day and its disciples. Plunged into a nefarious race against time, Siobhan and her fellow BARBELL operatives set out on the trail of the cult. But can a long-mothballed project a century in the planning really combat the threats of tomorrow? GLIMMER has eight days to prove it.

It is 1954 and we review the latest Ian Fleming James Bond 007 spy novel, Live and Let Die. With David Craggs, Ian Douglas and Shane Whaley

Spybrary Spy Book Podcast host Shane Whaley takes time away from the East German Desk to enjoy a 15 minute tea break with spy authors. Today Derek Thompson, author of spy thriller novel Standpoint tells us more about his first book in his Thomas Bladen spy thriller series.

Ben Macintyre, author of Agent Sonya makes his debut on the Spybrary Spy Book podcast. Ben sits down with author, journalist, and special agent Tim Shipman to share more about his latest spy non-fiction book. I am embarrassed to say I knew nothing about Soviet spy Ursula Burton. Though there are some very familiar names in this book, notables include Richard Sorge, Klaus Fuchs, Roger Hollis, Alexander Foote and many more. As we have come to expect with Ben Macintyre's writing, Agent Sonya is filled with detail but told in the manner of a gripping spy novel rather than a dry academic tome. Ben discusses how he is enjoying his role as a consultant on the new TV series about Kim Philby and how he is enjoying reading the script based on his book A Spy Among Friends. Ben reveals his next project is a narrative history of Colditz which is due out in 2022