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The Reunion

Factual: Life Stories

Series which reunites a group of people intimately involved in a moment of modern history

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The Reunion: Spycatcher

05/04/2015

Spycatcher

BBC Radio 4 - The Reunion, Spycatcher

Sue MacGregor's guests remember the epic battle to ban the MI5 memoir Spycatcher.

Former spy chief Stella Rimington and cabinet secretary Lord Armstrong remember the epic battle to ban the MI5 memoir Spycatcher with the book's co-author Paul Greengrass.

Sue MacGregor's guests remember the epic battle to ban the MI5 memoir Spycatcher.

When former MI5 officer Peter Wright tried to publish his memoirs in 1985, Margaret Thatcher's government were determined to stop him. So began an almighty legal battle that cost the taxpayer millions of pounds and ultimately made Spycatcher an international bestseller.

The action played out in courts in Australia and New Zealand, and continued in Britain and Europe as the government tried to stop newspapers printing details that were by now very public knowledge.

The British Cabinet Secretary Sir Robert Armstrong was subjected to a two-week cross-examination in which he admitted being "economical with the truth" when necessary. It soon became clear that what was on trial was not just Peter Wright - but the Official Secrets Act itself. And if you were in Australia, it was also the entire British establishment.

Sir Robert - now Lord Armstrong - joins Sue MacGregor to remember that momentous battle at the end of his career. They are joined by the book's ghostwriter Paul Greengrass, now a director of Hollywood films such as The Bourne Supremacy and Captain Phillips; former MI5 chief Stella Rimington, whose time as Director of Counter-Espionage was "largely dominated" by the case; Brian Perman, Managing Director of the publishers Heinemann; and journalist Richard Norton-Taylor who covered the case for the Guardian.

The programme also includes a contribution from the Australian politician Malcolm Turnbull who, as Peter Wright's lawyer, famously cross-examined the Cabinet Secretary.


Producer: Deborah Dudgeon
Series Producer: David Prest

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