SpyMasters

Paul Burke

Writer and critic Paul Burke interviews all the best writers on espionage. Each episode will bring you fascinating stories on spies, covert action and more - delving in to fact and fiction, past and present.

  1. 3 hr ago

    Red Verdict by James Comey

    Former FBI Director JAMES COMEY talks to Paul Burke about his novel RED VERDICT, The FBI, being a socially adept introvert, Russian operations in America, the inspiration for Nora and Benny and The Kansas City Massacre. RED VERDICT THE MURDER OF THE YEAR. THE TRIAL OF THE CENTURY.An influential defense company executive sits down for dinner at an exclusive restaurant in Manhattan. It's the last meal he will ever eat.The food was spiked with Novichok in a hit that suggests Russian involvement. It sends a chilling message to the FBI – but what, exactly? And why kill this man now?Deputy US Attorney Nora Carleton launches a criminal investigation into the most dangerous individuals she has ever faced, putting herself and her family in the crosshairs of forces determined to keep their secrets buried.If she can't land a guilty verdict, she risks losing more than her life – the security of the entire country will be compromised. James Comey served as the seventh Director of the FBI, from 2013 until May 9, 2017, when he was fired by Donald Trump. A Yonkers, New York native, Jim Comey attended the College of William and Mary and the University of Chicago Law School. After law school, Comey returned to New York and joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York as an Assistant U.S. Attorney. There, he took on numerous crimes, most notably organized crime in the case of the United States v. John Gambino, et al. Afterwards, Comey became an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia, where he handled the high-profile case that followed the 1996 terrorist attack on the U.S. military’s Khobar Towers in Khobar, Saudi Arabia. Comey returned to New York after 9/11 to become the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. At the end of 2003, he was tapped to be the Deputy Attorney General at the Department of Justice (DOJ) under then-U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft and moved to the Washington, D.C. area. Comey left DOJ in 2005 to serve as General Counsel and Senior Vice President at defense contractor Lockheed Martin. Five years later, he joined Bridgewater Associates, a Connecticut-based investment fund, as its General Counsel. In early 2013, Comey became a Lecturer in Law, a Senior Research Scholar, and Hertog Fellow in National Security Law at Columbia Law School. After he was fired as FBI Director, Comey held the King Lecture Chair in Public Policy at Howard University for 2017-18 and served as a Distinguished Lecturer in Public Policy at William and Mary for 2018-2019. In September 2020, his first book, "A Higher Loyalty," was made into a Showtime limited series, "The Comey Rule." Recommended Ann Patchett The Patron Saint of Liars Paul Burke is the presenter of Spymasters. His first book Spies on Screen will be published later this year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  2. 27 Jun

    The Interpreter's Secret Andrew Rosenheim

    Andrew Rosenheim talks about his contemporary spy thriller The Interpreter's Secret, AI in publishing, kindle, literary games on the page, cat and mouse chases. The Interpreter's Secret: in Stockholm for a G20 summit, the interpreter Thomas Weaver is summoned by the White House Chief of Staff to an off-the-record meeting with a Russian general. Expecting routine diplomacy, what Weaver gets instead is a chilling glimpse into a secret arrangement between Washington and the Kremlin. Warned never to divulge what has been said, Weaver discovers he has accidentally recorded the meeting – the only evidence that it took place. Now under threat, he escapes to the safety of a friend’s house in the English countryside, and then on to London. Yet even there he senses danger. Unsure where to turn, Weaver finds unexpected help from the enigmatic Lily Churchill, whose own loyalties are a mystery. As the two begin to grasp the significance of what Weaver has heard, he and Lily are forced to go underground to hide from their unknown pursuers, who seem determined to silence Weaver for good. The Interpreter’s Secret is a sophisticated literary thriller about corruption, conspiracy, and the lethal confusions of language. Mentions: Alan Parks Gunner, James Dickey, John le Carré, JAMES WOLFF SPIES AND OTHER GODS Paul Burke is the editor of Aspects of Crime. His first book Spies on Screen will be published later this year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  3. 11 Jun

    A Woman Called Edith by Daria Santini

    Daria Santini talks to Spymasters about her biography of Edith Tudor Hart, A Woman Called Edith, the Cambridge Five, Arnold Deutsch, photography, working class lives, communism and spying. Edith Tudor Hart has long evaded biographers. A Jewish-Austrian exile in 1930s London, she was a talented professional photographer, anti-fascist activist—and Soviet secret agent.Daria Santini provides the first full biography of this elusive figure. She traces Tudor Hart’s life from her early years in the socialist intellectual circles of Vienna through her training at the Bauhaus to her work as a Soviet agent in Britain. Tudor Hart played a vital role in the Cambridge Spies network, including recruiting Kim Philby. Throughout her life, Tudor Hart was deeply committed to the ideals of communism. But despite being watched by the British Secret Service for decades, she was never caught and never confessed.In this moving account, Santini pieces together the story of Edith’s life, revealing a woman of great energy, determination, and creativity Daria Santini is an independent scholar and writer. She was lecturer in German language and literature at the University of Oxford for fifteen years and is the author of The Exiles: Actors, Artists and Writers Who Fled the Nazis for London. Edith Tudor Hart: In the Shadow of Tyranny (Duncan Forbes), Poverty for Sale. Edith Tudor Hart: A Steady Eye in Turbulent Times by Brigette and Kurt Kaindl. Paul Burke is the presenter of Spymasters. His first book SPIES ON SCREEN will be published in September. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  4. 28 May

    The Cormorant Hunt by Michael Idov

    Michael Idov talks to Spymasters about his new novel THE CORMORANT HUNT, screenwriting, The Collaborators, Doug Lyman, geopolitics and the spy novel and walking back the cat. THE CORMORANT HUNT: Disheartened CIA officer Ari Falk, now hiding in the Republic of Georgia, is hailed as a hero by some and branded a traitor by others after blowing the lid off a massive conspiracy. But his quiet exile is shattered when a mission arises―one perfectly suited for someone as jaded and unpredictable as him.This stand-alone sequel thrusts us into a modern era of geopolitical conflict, where a hot war in Europe and shadowy political schemes set the stage for danger at every turn. Enter Asha Tamaskar, a brilliant, neurodivergent CIA officer with her own secrets, and Felix Burnham, a chilling antagonist with radical alliances that could change the global balance of power. From Tbilisi to Prague, Andorra to Bethesda, Idov crafts vivid, authentic settings that amplify the pulse-pounding action.Far from the usual spy thriller, The Cormorant Hunt is brimming with razor-sharp dialogue, heart-stopping twists, and complex character dynamics that bring humanity to the chaos. Every border crossed carries real-world consequences, making this a thriller that feels both urgent and unforgettable. Blending suspense, wit, and authentic storytelling, it’s a must-read for fans of political intrigue, espionage, and thrillers that don’t play by the rules. Paul Burke is the editor of Aspects of Crime and the presenter of Spymasters. His first book SPIES ON SCREEN will be published on 24th September. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  5. 7 May

    Master of Lies: How Anthony Blunt's Treachery Changed Our World

    Piers Blofeld talks to Spymasters about his new book on Anthony Blunt, MASTER OF LIES, the greatest traitor, working for Churchill and Stalin, Operation Market Garden, a not-confession confession, enjoying the limelight of discovery. MASTER OF LIES: In a brilliant feat of literary detective work Master of Lies tells the extraordinary untold story of Anthony Blunt's life as a spy. Based on extensive research into newly released files he is revealed as not simply "the fourth man", but the most dangerous spy of the twentieth century.During the war, as the fate of the world hung in the balance, Blunt's intelligence was being fed straight on to the desks of Hitler, Stalin and Churchill. His hand was secretly guiding our collective fate and his treason led to the deaths of tens of thousands. He casts a shadow which looms large to this day.The official narrative is that Blunt was the least of the Cambridge spies - and yet he was the one who got away with it. While the rest drank themselves to death in dingy Moscow flats, Blunt revelled in his brilliant career as an art historian, Surveyor of the Queen's pictures and Knight of the Realm. He was protected not just by his many friendships with the great and the good, but by the brilliance with which he played the game - his was a secret too big to be told.Master of Lies reads like the best spy fiction but it solves one of the great espionage mysteries of our times. Piers Blofeld is a literary agent and, apart from a brief stint as a story consultant in the video games industry he has worked in publishing for the whole of his career. A regular commentator on the mysteries of the book business he has had his own column in Writing Magazine for the last five years. Born and bred in Norfolk, his surname made it all but inevitable he would nurture a fascination with supervillainy and spying. Master of Lies is his first book. Recommended Anthony Glees The Secrets of the Service Paul Burke is editor of Aspects of Crime. His first book Spies on Screen From Silent to Streaming will be published in September. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  6. 23 Apr

    Stalin's Apostles: The Cambridge Five and the Making of the Soviet Empire Pt.2

    STALIN'S APOSTLES: The Cambridge Five and the making of the Soviet Empire, Part 2. From MacLean and Burgess' defection to today, research, new sources, The Cambridge Five are surrounded by myth. It was time for a new sober and revealing history of the most deadly spy ring ever. Paul Burke talks to Antonia Senior about her new thrilling account of Burgess, Maclean, Philby, Blunt & Cairncross: STALIN'S APOSTLES is a radical new look at the way five people allowed their obsession with Communist ideology to overshadow any sense of morality or decency - or loyalty to their country. Why did these gilded charming men, blessed with brains, and beauty and opportunities, choose to betray their country?Using recently declassified files, STALIN'S APOSTLES explores as never before the treachery of Donald Maclean, Guy Burgess, Kim Philby, John Cairncross and Keeper of the Queen's Pictures Anthony Blunt, all radicalised while at Cambridge University in the 1930s. Their clandestine supply of British and US intelligence material gave Stalin an inside track on US and British decision-making until the implosion of the spy-ring in May 1951. There was barely a secret, barely a decision made, that Stalin did not know about, thanks to his Cambridge spies, and his networks in the United States. The Five became tools in Stalin's imperial scheme, responsible directly and indirectly for the death of thousands of men and women fighting against Soviet domination.Shielded for so long by the British Establishment, four of the five were never prosecuted for their crimes. As STALIN'S APOSTLES reveals, they were exposed as much by their own incompetence as by forensic investigation by the CIA, MI5 or MI6. And in time another dictator emerged as ruthless as Stalin, but with an even greater desire to establish a Russian Empire that would threaten Western democracy. The legacy of the Cambridge Five is not only in the graveyards of eastern Europe, but at the heart of Putin's Kremlin. Paul Burke is the new presenter of Spymasters and editor of Aspects of Crime. His first book Spies on Screen: From Silent to Streaming will be published in September. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  7. 9 Apr

    STALIN'S APOSTLES: The Cambridge Five and the making of the Soviet Empire

    The Cambridge Five are surrounded by myth. It was time for a new sober and revealing history of the most deadly spy ring ever. Paul Burke talks to Antonia Senior about her new thrilling account of Burgess, Maclean, Philby, Blunt & Cairncross: STALIN'S APOSTLES is a radical new look at the way five people allowed their obsession with Communist ideology to overshadow any sense of morality or decency - or loyalty to their country. Why did these gilded charming men, blessed with brains, and beauty and opportunities, choose to betray their country?Using recently declassified files, STALIN'S APOSTLES explores as never before the treachery of Donald Maclean, Guy Burgess, Kim Philby, John Cairncross and Keeper of the Queen's Pictures Anthony Blunt, all radicalised while at Cambridge University in the 1930s. Their clandestine supply of British and US intelligence material gave Stalin an inside track on US and British decision-making until the implosion of the spy-ring in May 1951. There was barely a secret, barely a decision made, that Stalin did not know about, thanks to his Cambridge spies, and his networks in the United States. The Five became tools in Stalin's imperial scheme, responsible directly and indirectly for the death of thousands of men and women fighting against Soviet domination.Shielded for so long by the British Establishment, four of the five were never prosecuted for their crimes. As STALIN'S APOSTLES reveals, they were exposed as much by their own incompetence as by forensic investigation by the CIA, MI5 or MI6. And in time another dictator emerged as ruthless as Stalin, but with an even greater desire to establish a Russian Empire that would threaten Western democracy. The legacy of the Cambridge Five is not only in the graveyards of eastern Europe, but at the heart of Putin's Kremlin. Paul Burke is the new presenter of Spymasters and editor of Aspects of Crime. His first book Spies on Screen: From Silent to Streaming will be published in September. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  8. 26 Mar

    Spymasters Documentary - Sky Arts, Director Adrian Munsey

    Adrian Munsey, director/writer of Spymasters a new documentary series for Sky Arts talks to Paul Burke about the intersection between history and its representation in film and fiction. The documentary features contributions from Christopher Andrews, academics, writers and has extensive archival footage and movie clips. Featured here: the biography of our times, exploring the boundaries between private and public, reality and perception, truth and myth/propaganda. An ordinance survey of geopolitical realities and the state versus the individual. Why do we love spy fiction, is it to ameliorate our fears or to better understand the world. Adrian Munsey is an entrepreneur, producer, impresario, composer and author. He has enjoyed one of the most varied careers in British media. Spymasters , following on from the Wonderland series of documentaries, is his latest production. Spymasters airs on Sky Arts at 9pm on March, 31st. Paul Burke is the editor of Aspects of Crime and is writing an encyclopedia of spy fiction. His first book, Spies on Screen: From Silent to Streaming will be published in September. Episode produced by Junkyarddog Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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About

Writer and critic Paul Burke interviews all the best writers on espionage. Each episode will bring you fascinating stories on spies, covert action and more - delving in to fact and fiction, past and present.

Information

  • Creator
    Paul Burke
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    60
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Aspects of History
  • Show Website
    SpyMasters
  • Provider

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