Spy story

The Black Door: Spies, Secret Intelligence and British Prime Ministers

British prime ministers have never been neutral towards the intelligence services. Intelligence historians Richard Aldrich and Rory Cormac have written an accessible book, indicating how different premiers reacted to intelligence reports - and often bypassed their own officials, establishing their own private operations.

Churchill revelled in the world of secrets and approved the assassination of senior Nazi generals. Harold Wilson was convinced that he had been stalked by Boss, apartheid South Africa's service - and this convinced him to develop closer ties with Mossad. Neville Chamberlain employed a former MI5 operative to spy on the Labour Party - and on his opponents in the Conservative Party. Anthony Eden hated "the Muslim Mussolini", Gamal Abdul Nasser, and even authorised contact with the Muslim Brotherhood to investigate whether the Egyptian president could be overthrown.