The inspiration for Fleming's Bond?, 15 Jul 2008
If you like adventure then you can't go far wrong with this book. During World War II, petty East End criminal Eddie Chapman finds himself banged up in occupied Jersey's prison. He is given a lifeline that he cannot refuse - come and work for German secret intelligence as a spy or face the consequences. Eddie opts for the former and is thrown into the grandiose world of a German spymaster. Now he is faced with the moral dilemma of double-crossing his country or the gamble of double crossing his new found boss. You'll have to read the book to find out which choice he makes ... I thoroughly recommend this book!



Well written but lacks of characters' in-depth analysis, 15 Jul 2008
The book is well written. The author limits himself to analyzing events based on first-hand evidence: on the one hand this allows to draw a very faithful picture of agent Zig Zag's wartime adventures. On the other hand however, this method discourage the author from trying to investigate in-depth motivations and convictions of agent Zig Zag.

Fritz, 24 May 2008

Agent Zigzag, a Review by the
Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club







When one of the most wanted men in Britain escaped police by jumping through a Jersey hotel window he leaped into a new career, an Englishman whose deeds were to be heard and applauded by both The Fuehrer and Winston Churchill.

Hitler knew him as Little Fritz; the blue-eyed boy of the Abwher, the Nazi secret service and Churchill was impressed by his exploit, for he was spying for Britain, too, under the codename Agent Zigzag. Eddie Arnold Chapman was, a rising star in the Soho world of gangsters, and, in the twilight days of peace in early l939, a dark haired, handsome young man, destined it seemed, to spend many years behind bars.
He was a care rogue, a womaniser, a leading figure in the mob known as "The Jelly Gang" for their habit of using gelignite to blow safes. He could have been a prototype for 007 James Bond. His girlfriend was pregnant and he was with another woman when the police found him in the Channel Islands. He was captured, eventually and jailed, managed to rob the Governor and then the Germans invaded and he found himself in a Nazi prison camp outside Paris. He was already a bit of a linguist, having picked up basic German and French.
The harsh regime did not appeal so Chapman offered his services to the goose steppers; after lengthy Teutonic thought, the SS the Abwher decided he was genuine. They trained him to be one of their spies in England He graduated from a Nazi school for spies, in France with honours and made many friends, especially his boss, a somewhat aristocratic chap who kept him well supplied with cash. Chapman, naturally, quickly found that boss man was taking his cut from the thousands of Reich marks he was handing over. It takes a crook to know a crook.
The Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club thought Agent Zigzag by journalist Ben Macintyre a very entertaining read, a combination of Bond and Biggles. Fritz, parachuting at night and landing in a muddy Cambridgeshire field and naively banging on a farmhouse door and saying he had been in a car accident. MI5who turned him into their man picked him up. Money changed hands.
Fritz blowing up the De Havilland factory where the wonder plane, the Mosquito was made,
the staged attack being arranged by MI5 experts to fool the Germans.
The stubborn Englishness of the Editor of The Times in refusing to print an untruthful report, which would have fooled the enemy into believing Fritz, was doing good work. . Not a problem for the patriotic Daily Express!
Fritz still has that swashbuckling air about him, he returns to his German group leader and friend by sea, and seemingly reverts to the Nazi regime. Back in Germany and many more adventures, he finds love again in Norway with the beautiful Dagmar. Just as he arranged with MI5 to pay a good "pension" to his woman, so now he does the same for his new love, with the Germans!
He parachutes back into Britain with the brief to track down the new anti-U-boat weapon that is causing devastation to the wolf packs. Such a device only exists in the Nazi imagination, of course and the boffins think up a hilarious device that is pure Monty Python or The Goons, just to give the enemy something to think about. The secret weapon was, of course, the Bletchley Park code breaker.
Had the stakes not been so huge, Agent Zigzag would have been a biting satirical piece of work, yet, it is the gripping life story of courageous con man who reverted to type at war's end to thieving and safe breaking and, naturally, womanising. A crook, but our crook. As his MI5 boss said, "One of the bravest men I have ever met."
Oh, yes, and old Adolf probably thought much the same. Eddie Arnold Chapman was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class.
Chapman, born in the North East, was a charismatic crook made good by his courage and apparent indifference to personal suffering. He mixed with the great and the good but he was never a Gentleman, he was a spy who did a great service for his country in her time of need.


All, especially the ladies, loved him. It could have been men like Chapman who inspired a Naval Intelligence officer, one Ian Fleming, to create James Bond. Agent Zigzag did not have a licence to kill, officially, but he dreamed of assassinating Hitler!




The real deal, 16 Apr 2008
I recently read Europe at War which points out that quite frankly what won the war was the meat grinder of the Eastern Front. So no amount of cloak and dagger stuff carried out by Britain really made a big difference in the greater scheme of things. While this is true, this cannot hide the fact that Eddie Chapman's story is simply fascinating and one you are guaranteed to get swept up in.

This is the true story of a small time British crook who was recruited by the German war machine to go to Britain and spy. Only for him to become a double agent and in turn spy on the Germans after his return from a "successful mission".

It is written like a comedy thriller and you do have to keep reminding yourself that this all actually happened. It is rip-roaring stuff making you live every moment of fear, tension and laughter too.

This is brilliant non-fiction. Highly readable, educational and should be turned into a great BBC mini-series.


Puts James Bond Shame , 15 Apr 2008
All that needs to be said about this book is that if you like a good story, read it. The best bit of it all is it is all true. This amazing story would be dismissed as too far fetched if it were fiction, the truth is stranger than fiction they say and this certainly is.

The inspiration for Fleming's Bond?, 15 Jul 2008
If you like adventure then you can't go far wrong with this book. During World War II, petty East End criminal Eddie Chapman finds himself banged up in occupied Jersey's prison. He is given a lifeline that he cannot refuse - come and work for German secret intelligence as a spy or face the consequences. Eddie opts for the former and is thrown into the grandiose world of a German spymaster. Now he is faced with the moral dilemma of double-crossing his country or the gamble of double crossing his new found boss. You'll have to read the book to find out which choice he makes ... I thoroughly recommend this book!



Well written but lacks of characters' in-depth analysis, 15 Jul 2008
The book is well written. The author limits himself to analyzing events based on first-hand evidence: on the one hand this allows to draw a very faithful picture of agent Zig Zag's wartime adventures. On the other hand however, this method discourage the author from trying to investigate in-depth motivations and convictions of agent Zig Zag.

Fritz, 24 May 2008

Agent Zigzag, a Review by the
Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club







When one of the most wanted men in Britain escaped police by jumping through a Jersey hotel window he leaped into a new career, an Englishman whose deeds were to be heard and applauded by both The Fuehrer and Winston Churchill.

Hitler knew him as Little Fritz; the blue-eyed boy of the Abwher, the Nazi secret service and Churchill was impressed by his exploit, for he was spying for Britain, too, under the codename Agent Zigzag. Eddie Arnold Chapman was, a rising star in the Soho world of gangsters, and, in the twilight days of peace in early l939, a dark haired, handsome young man, destined it seemed, to spend many years behind bars.
He was a care rogue, a womaniser, a leading figure in the mob known as "The Jelly Gang" for their habit of using gelignite to blow safes. He could have been a prototype for 007 James Bond. His girlfriend was pregnant and he was with another woman when the police found him in the Channel Islands. He was captured, eventually and jailed, managed to rob the Governor and then the Germans invaded and he found himself in a Nazi prison camp outside Paris. He was already a bit of a linguist, having picked up basic German and French.
The harsh regime did not appeal so Chapman offered his services to the goose steppers; after lengthy Teutonic thought, the SS the Abwher decided he was genuine. They trained him to be one of their spies in England He graduated from a Nazi school for spies, in France with honours and made many friends, especially his boss, a somewhat aristocratic chap who kept him well supplied with cash. Chapman, naturally, quickly found that boss man was taking his cut from the thousands of Reich marks he was handing over. It takes a crook to know a crook.
The Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club thought Agent Zigzag by journalist Ben Macintyre a very entertaining read, a combination of Bond and Biggles. Fritz, parachuting at night and landing in a muddy Cambridgeshire field and naively banging on a farmhouse door and saying he had been in a car accident. MI5who turned him into their man picked him up. Money changed hands.
Fritz blowing up the De Havilland factory where the wonder plane, the Mosquito was made,
the staged attack being arranged by MI5 experts to fool the Germans.
The stubborn Englishness of the Editor of The Times in refusing to print an untruthful report, which would have fooled the enemy into believing Fritz, was doing good work. . Not a problem for the patriotic Daily Express!
Fritz still has that swashbuckling air about him, he returns to his German group leader and friend by sea, and seemingly reverts to the Nazi regime. Back in Germany and many more adventures, he finds love again in Norway with the beautiful Dagmar. Just as he arranged with MI5 to pay a good "pension" to his woman, so now he does the same for his new love, with the Germans!
He parachutes back into Britain with the brief to track down the new anti-U-boat weapon that is causing devastation to the wolf packs. Such a device only exists in the Nazi imagination, of course and the boffins think up a hilarious device that is pure Monty Python or The Goons, just to give the enemy something to think about. The secret weapon was, of course, the Bletchley Park code breaker.
Had the stakes not been so huge, Agent Zigzag would have been a biting satirical piece of work, yet, it is the gripping life story of courageous con man who reverted to type at war's end to thieving and safe breaking and, naturally, womanising. A crook, but our crook. As his MI5 boss said, "One of the bravest men I have ever met."
Oh, yes, and old Adolf probably thought much the same. Eddie Arnold Chapman was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class.
Chapman, born in the North East, was a charismatic crook made good by his courage and apparent indifference to personal suffering. He mixed with the great and the good but he was never a Gentleman, he was a spy who did a great service for his country in her time of need.


All, especially the ladies, loved him. It could have been men like Chapman who inspired a Naval Intelligence officer, one Ian Fleming, to create James Bond. Agent Zigzag did not have a licence to kill, officially, but he dreamed of assassinating Hitler!




The real deal, 16 Apr 2008
I recently read Europe at War which points out that quite frankly what won the war was the meat grinder of the Eastern Front. So no amount of cloak and dagger stuff carried out by Britain really made a big difference in the greater scheme of things. While this is true, this cannot hide the fact that Eddie Chapman's story is simply fascinating and one you are guaranteed to get swept up in.

This is the true story of a small time British crook who was recruited by the German war machine to go to Britain and spy. Only for him to become a double agent and in turn spy on the Germans after his return from a "successful mission".

It is written like a comedy thriller and you do have to keep reminding yourself that this all actually happened. It is rip-roaring stuff making you live every moment of fear, tension and laughter too.

This is brilliant non-fiction. Highly readable, educational and should be turned into a great BBC mini-series.


Puts James Bond Shame , 15 Apr 2008
All that needs to be said about this book is that if you like a good story, read it. The best bit of it all is it is all true. This amazing story would be dismissed as too far fetched if it were fiction, the truth is stranger than fiction they say and this certainly is.

MI6 huh ?, 01 Sep 2005
I had read "Kilo17", and was very surprised to find out about this book from Ferguson. Well, really, how much of an expert can he pretend to be, given he has barely spent a year or two with 6 ?
That's what he says in his first book, when he explains how he ended up assigned to HMCE.
Mind you the book content is not uninteresting, but nothing you can't find anywhere else through open sources. Which confirmed my impression of a very relative field "expertise" from the author.

A great place to start, 03 May 2005
This is clearly designed to be an introduction to the subject for the general public so I suppose specialists will know much of what is in here, but even so it is an excellent read, especially good for dipping into rather than reading cover to cover. It is also a fascinating book because it is the only one about the craft of spying written by a real former MI6 officer. The emphasis of the book (the manipulation of people rather than use of bugs and gadgets) is intriguing. But the big question is: what happened to the TV series which the book was supposed to accompany? It's sounds as though it would have been great, but I never even heard that it was on.

the reality of spying, 19 Jan 2005
So many books on espionage concentrate on James Bond style gadgets. This book avoids that and,as well as chapters defining what intelligence is, developing a cover or new identity,and surveillance and countersurveillance, it has excellent information on the core of espionage which is agent recruitment. This book stresses how to build relationships or if you want to be cynical about it,how to manipulate people.
Forget the movies and read this book written by an ex-MI6 officer.

The inspiration for Fleming's Bond?, 15 Jul 2008
If you like adventure then you can't go far wrong with this book. During World War II, petty East End criminal Eddie Chapman finds himself banged up in occupied Jersey's prison. He is given a lifeline that he cannot refuse - come and work for German secret intelligence as a spy or face the consequences. Eddie opts for the former and is thrown into the grandiose world of a German spymaster. Now he is faced with the moral dilemma of double-crossing his country or the gamble of double crossing his new found boss. You'll have to read the book to find out which choice he makes ... I thoroughly recommend this book!



Well written but lacks of characters' in-depth analysis, 15 Jul 2008
The book is well written. The author limits himself to analyzing events based on first-hand evidence: on the one hand this allows to draw a very faithful picture of agent Zig Zag's wartime adventures. On the other hand however, this method discourage the author from trying to investigate in-depth motivations and convictions of agent Zig Zag.

Fritz, 24 May 2008

Agent Zigzag, a Review by the
Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club







When one of the most wanted men in Britain escaped police by jumping through a Jersey hotel window he leaped into a new career, an Englishman whose deeds were to be heard and applauded by both The Fuehrer and Winston Churchill.

Hitler knew him as Little Fritz; the blue-eyed boy of the Abwher, the Nazi secret service and Churchill was impressed by his exploit, for he was spying for Britain, too, under the codename Agent Zigzag. Eddie Arnold Chapman was, a rising star in the Soho world of gangsters, and, in the twilight days of peace in early l939, a dark haired, handsome young man, destined it seemed, to spend many years behind bars.
He was a care rogue, a womaniser, a leading figure in the mob known as "The Jelly Gang" for their habit of using gelignite to blow safes. He could have been a prototype for 007 James Bond. His girlfriend was pregnant and he was with another woman when the police found him in the Channel Islands. He was captured, eventually and jailed, managed to rob the Governor and then the Germans invaded and he found himself in a Nazi prison camp outside Paris. He was already a bit of a linguist, having picked up basic German and French.
The harsh regime did not appeal so Chapman offered his services to the goose steppers; after lengthy Teutonic thought, the SS the Abwher decided he was genuine. They trained him to be one of their spies in England He graduated from a Nazi school for spies, in France with honours and made many friends, especially his boss, a somewhat aristocratic chap who kept him well supplied with cash. Chapman, naturally, quickly found that boss man was taking his cut from the thousands of Reich marks he was handing over. It takes a crook to know a crook.
The Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club thought Agent Zigzag by journalist Ben Macintyre a very entertaining read, a combination of Bond and Biggles. Fritz, parachuting at night and landing in a muddy Cambridgeshire field and naively banging on a farmhouse door and saying he had been in a car accident. MI5who turned him into their man picked him up. Money changed hands.
Fritz blowing up the De Havilland factory where the wonder plane, the Mosquito was made,
the staged attack being arranged by MI5 experts to fool the Germans.
The stubborn Englishness of the Editor of The Times in refusing to print an untruthful report, which would have fooled the enemy into believing Fritz, was doing good work. . Not a problem for the patriotic Daily Express!
Fritz still has that swashbuckling air about him, he returns to his German group leader and friend by sea, and seemingly reverts to the Nazi regime. Back in Germany and many more adventures, he finds love again in Norway with the beautiful Dagmar. Just as he arranged with MI5 to pay a good "pension" to his woman, so now he does the same for his new love, with the Germans!
He parachutes back into Britain with the brief to track down the new anti-U-boat weapon that is causing devastation to the wolf packs. Such a device only exists in the Nazi imagination, of course and the boffins think up a hilarious device that is pure Monty Python or The Goons, just to give the enemy something to think about. The secret weapon was, of course, the Bletchley Park code breaker.
Had the stakes not been so huge, Agent Zigzag would have been a biting satirical piece of work, yet, it is the gripping life story of courageous con man who reverted to type at war's end to thieving and safe breaking and, naturally, womanising. A crook, but our crook. As his MI5 boss said, "One of the bravest men I have ever met."
Oh, yes, and old Adolf probably thought much the same. Eddie Arnold Chapman was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class.
Chapman, born in the North East, was a charismatic crook made good by his courage and apparent indifference to personal suffering. He mixed with the great and the good but he was never a Gentleman, he was a spy who did a great service for his country in her time of need.


All, especially the ladies, loved him. It could have been men like Chapman who inspired a Naval Intelligence officer, one Ian Fleming, to create James Bond. Agent Zigzag did not have a licence to kill, officially, but he dreamed of assassinating Hitler!




The real deal, 16 Apr 2008
I recently read Europe at War which points out that quite frankly what won the war was the meat grinder of the Eastern Front. So no amount of cloak and dagger stuff carried out by Britain really made a big difference in the greater scheme of things. While this is true, this cannot hide the fact that Eddie Chapman's story is simply fascinating and one you are guaranteed to get swept up in.

This is the true story of a small time British crook who was recruited by the German war machine to go to Britain and spy. Only for him to become a double agent and in turn spy on the Germans after his return from a "successful mission".

It is written like a comedy thriller and you do have to keep reminding yourself that this all actually happened. It is rip-roaring stuff making you live every moment of fear, tension and laughter too.

This is brilliant non-fiction. Highly readable, educational and should be turned into a great BBC mini-series.


Puts James Bond Shame , 15 Apr 2008
All that needs to be said about this book is that if you like a good story, read it. The best bit of it all is it is all true. This amazing story would be dismissed as too far fetched if it were fiction, the truth is stranger than fiction they say and this certainly is.

MI6 huh ?, 01 Sep 2005
I had read "Kilo17", and was very surprised to find out about this book from Ferguson. Well, really, how much of an expert can he pretend to be, given he has barely spent a year or two with 6 ?
That's what he says in his first book, when he explains how he ended up assigned to HMCE.
Mind you the book content is not uninteresting, but nothing you can't find anywhere else through open sources. Which confirmed my impression of a very relative field "expertise" from the author.

A great place to start, 03 May 2005
This is clearly designed to be an introduction to the subject for the general public so I suppose specialists will know much of what is in here, but even so it is an excellent read, especially good for dipping into rather than reading cover to cover. It is also a fascinating book because it is the only one about the craft of spying written by a real former MI6 officer. The emphasis of the book (the manipulation of people rather than use of bugs and gadgets) is intriguing. But the big question is: what happened to the TV series which the book was supposed to accompany? It's sounds as though it would have been great, but I never even heard that it was on.

the reality of spying, 19 Jan 2005
So many books on espionage concentrate on James Bond style gadgets. This book avoids that and,as well as chapters defining what intelligence is, developing a cover or new identity,and surveillance and countersurveillance, it has excellent information on the core of espionage which is agent recruitment. This book stresses how to build relationships or if you want to be cynical about it,how to manipulate people.
Forget the movies and read this book written by an ex-MI6 officer.

Boring and repetitive, 14 Apr 2008
This book appears to be written by someone who worked in Northern Ireland but there are a number of anomolies which indicate they were not as involved as they claim.

Beware the first three quarters of the book is taken up with extremely dull detail about special forces training which will be nothing new to you if you have any of the SAS books previously.



And you think the SAS have it tough? , 13 Feb 2008
This book was a real eye opener. I recently discovered a copy of this book and having read many of the SAS real life stories, did not really know what to expect.

What comes across is an in-depth look at an elite unit that most people know very little about. A unit so secret that they use false names and know very little about the other people they serve with. The book covers in detail the training, selection and the gruelling punishment this poses to those involved. This really is a "make one mistake and you are out" mentality.

That a unit as covert as the 14 Company, who actually take on and train members of the SAS, can have received very little published notoriety says a lot in itself. The members of these units have a job to do. A job that is genuinely dangerous and life threatening on a day to day basis. All the more difficult when you have to not only memorise an A-Z in depth, but know how to communicate to multiple moving Operatives at the same time in an urban or country environment, using a covert language - and be ready to enter a lethal fire fight on a regular occurrence.

Experts in weapons, surveillance, photography, survival, driving and amongst the most physically fittest people in the forces, these people deserve all our respect for the job they do and get no recognition for.

I can see why this book was a Sunday Times Bestseller. Buy it.


Highly Recommended!!, 04 Dec 2006
Great read for any walk of life... It kept me gripped until the end, in fact I read it within a couple of days!

My advice would be to buy it, and enjoy!

Twelve Months In The Life Of...., 10 Jun 2006
Yeah, well ... Might be a part of the problem. The book REALLY starts in its last third, most of the pages before # 200 being devoted to an excrutiatingly precise, day-by-day, selection course.
It seems to me that Rennie has spent very little time with the Det, and has tried to jump on the bandwagon of Special Forces, terrorism -related book circuit, by exploiting as much as possible his year with 14 Intelligence Company.


And it shows in "The Operators" that Rennie has definitely very little of substance to write. The technical details, the detailing of almost every push-up session allows him to wrap up the 300 pages. Even in the last third of the book, which specifically relates to his months as an actual operator, he fills in the blanks by telling many stories that happened during the Troubles, stories he was not directly involved in.
Analysis, whether social or political, is little to none. Well, that might have been high expectations anyway, but at least, I would have liked to read something beyond the tech review and the procedurals of military intel.

Very disappointing from my point of view, except for the inconditional militaria reader.

This man did the business!, 31 Jan 2006
As a serviceman myself and having known a couple of people who have actually served with Special Forces units of one kind or another, it was with a fair amount of reserve that I started reading this book. Would it be Gung Ho, very 'Rupertish', or totally laughable and ludicrous like the book entitled "The Sixteen" written by an armchair warrior who didn't have a clue? (please see my review on Amazon.com). I thought I would give the man a chance and I was very pleased to be able to report that it is one of the best accounts of selection, training and follow up operations in the Northern Ireland Province that I have ever read. A lot of the weapons, logistics and equipment details I knew to be true from my own experiences in the Armed Forces but I did in fact cross-check the training and slightly 'shadier' aspects within the content of the book with an ex-Royal Marine pal of mine who actually served with the 'Detachment'. Whilst my pal was still very guarded and utterly professional about it all, he confirmed that everything that I'd asked him regarding this unit and what he thought of the writer's knowledge and experiences seemed very bona fide and although James Rennie was most definitely of the 'Rupert'(Officer) variety he was without doubt made of very stern stuff, totally committed, went through the mill and did the business when it mattered. A real eye opener for the general public, military historians and potential SF applicants! An absolutely excellent read. Buy it!

You have to admire the cheek of Open Secret's author Stella Rimington. After a career spanning 25 years in MI5, during which she was more than happy for the Official Secrets Acts to be used to the government's advantage, she is now outraged that attempts should have been made to block publication of her memoirs and is calling for the act to be reformed. In an extended preface to Open Secret, Rimington writes of her encounter with Cabinet secretary, Sir Richard Wilson, "By the end of an hour or so of being threatened, bullied and cajoled in the more-in-sorrow-than-in-anger way the Establishment behaves to its recalcitrant sons and, as I now know, daughters, I was very shaken". One wonders what else she expected? The thought of any former director-general of MI5 writing his or her memoirs was bound to have disturbed the security services and, compared to many, Rimington got off lightly. But then, whatever else she might think, Rimington is still very much an Establishment woman. She submitted her manuscript for vetting, took out one or two edgy bits, and as she disarmingly points out, there are no revelations about the inner workings of the intelligence services. When she gets to any contentious issues, such as MI5's role in infiltrating CND and breaking the miners' strike, all she has to say is that MI5 never did anything wrong, that that those who say otherwise are conspiracy theorists and that we'll just have to take her word for it because she's right. The portrait that emerges of a bunch of mildly incompetent bureaucrats who wouldn't say boo to a goose does no favours to Rimington or MI5. The books does have its moments, particularly those describing a woman isolated in an almost exclusively male world, but its real significance lies in the fact it was published at all. If the director-general is allowed to go public, there's precious little to stop the MI5 foot soldiers doing likewise. And when they do, the skeletons that Rimington has kept firmly locked in the cupboard might start to come tumbling out. --John Crace

The inspiration for Fleming's Bond?, 15 Jul 2008
If you like adventure then you can't go far wrong with this book. During World War II, petty East End criminal Eddie Chapman finds himself banged up in occupied Jersey's prison. He is given a lifeline that he cannot refuse - come and work for German secret intelligence as a spy or face the consequences. Eddie opts for the former and is thrown into the grandiose world of a German spymaster. Now he is faced with the moral dilemma of double-crossing his country or the gamble of double crossing his new found boss. You'll have to read the book to find out which choice he makes ... I thoroughly recommend this book!



Well written but lacks of characters' in-depth analysis, 15 Jul 2008
The book is well written. The author limits himself to analyzing events based on first-hand evidence: on the one hand this allows to draw a very faithful picture of agent Zig Zag's wartime adventures. On the other hand however, this method discourage the author from trying to investigate in-depth motivations and convictions of agent Zig Zag.

Fritz, 24 May 2008

Agent Zigzag, a Review by the
Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club







When one of the most wanted men in Britain escaped police by jumping through a Jersey hotel window he leaped into a new career, an Englishman whose deeds were to be heard and applauded by both The Fuehrer and Winston Churchill.

Hitler knew him as Little Fritz; the blue-eyed boy of the Abwher, the Nazi secret service and Churchill was impressed by his exploit, for he was spying for Britain, too, under the codename Agent Zigzag. Eddie Arnold Chapman was, a rising star in the Soho world of gangsters, and, in the twilight days of peace in early l939, a dark haired, handsome young man, destined it seemed, to spend many years behind bars.
He was a care rogue, a womaniser, a leading figure in the mob known as "The Jelly Gang" for their habit of using gelignite to blow safes. He could have been a prototype for 007 James Bond. His girlfriend was pregnant and he was with another woman when the police found him in the Channel Islands. He was captured, eventually and jailed, managed to rob the Governor and then the Germans invaded and he found himself in a Nazi prison camp outside Paris. He was already a bit of a linguist, having picked up basic German and French.
The harsh regime did not appeal so Chapman offered his services to the goose steppers; after lengthy Teutonic thought, the SS the Abwher decided he was genuine. They trained him to be one of their spies in England He graduated from a Nazi school for spies, in France with honours and made many friends, especially his boss, a somewhat aristocratic chap who kept him well supplied with cash. Chapman, naturally, quickly found that boss man was taking his cut from the thousands of Reich marks he was handing over. It takes a crook to know a crook.
The Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club thought Agent Zigzag by journalist Ben Macintyre a very entertaining read, a combination of Bond and Biggles. Fritz, parachuting at night and landing in a muddy Cambridgeshire field and naively banging on a farmhouse door and saying he had been in a car accident. MI5who turned him into their man picked him up. Money changed hands.
Fritz blowing up the De Havilland factory where the wonder plane, the Mosquito was made,
the staged attack being arranged by MI5 experts to fool the Germans.
The stubborn Englishness of the Editor of The Times in refusing to print an untruthful report, which would have fooled the enemy into believing Fritz, was doing good work. . Not a problem for the patriotic Daily Express!
Fritz still has that swashbuckling air about him, he returns to his German group leader and friend by sea, and seemingly reverts to the Nazi regime. Back in Germany and many more adventures, he finds love again in Norway with the beautiful Dagmar. Just as he arranged with MI5 to pay a good "pension" to his woman, so now he does the same for his new love, with the Germans!
He parachutes back into Britain with the brief to track down the new anti-U-boat weapon that is causing devastation to the wolf packs. Such a device only exists in the Nazi imagination, of course and the boffins think up a hilarious device that is pure Monty Python or The Goons, just to give the enemy something to think about. The secret weapon was, of course, the Bletchley Park code breaker.
Had the stakes not been so huge, Agent Zigzag would have been a biting satirical piece of work, yet, it is the gripping life story of courageous con man who reverted to type at war's end to thieving and safe breaking and, naturally, womanising. A crook, but our crook. As his MI5 boss said, "One of the bravest men I have ever met."
Oh, yes, and old Adolf probably thought much the same. Eddie Arnold Chapman was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class.
Chapman, born in the North East, was a charismatic crook made good by his courage and apparent indifference to personal suffering. He mixed with the great and the good but he was never a Gentleman, he was a spy who did a great service for his country in her time of need.


All, especially the ladies, loved him. It could have been men like Chapman who inspired a Naval Intelligence officer, one Ian Fleming, to create James Bond. Agent Zigzag did not have a licence to kill, officially, but he dreamed of assassinating Hitler!




The real deal, 16 Apr 2008
I recently read Europe at War which points out that quite frankly what won the war was the meat grinder of the Eastern Front. So no amount of cloak and dagger stuff carried out by Britain really made a big difference in the greater scheme of things. While this is true, this cannot hide the fact that Eddie Chapman's story is simply fascinating and one you are guaranteed to get swept up in.

This is the true story of a small time British crook who was recruited by the German war machine to go to Britain and spy. Only for him to become a double agent and in turn spy on the Germans after his return from a "successful mission".

It is written like a comedy thriller and you do have to keep reminding yourself that this all actually happened. It is rip-roaring stuff making you live every moment of fear, tension and laughter too.

This is brilliant non-fiction. Highly readable, educational and should be turned into a great BBC mini-series.


Puts James Bond Shame , 15 Apr 2008
All that needs to be said about this book is that if you like a good story, read it. The best bit of it all is it is all true. This amazing story would be dismissed as too far fetched if it were fiction, the truth is stranger than fiction they say and this certainly is.

MI6 huh ?, 01 Sep 2005
I had read "Kilo17", and was very surprised to find out about this book from Ferguson. Well, really, how much of an expert can he pretend to be, given he has barely spent a year or two with 6 ?
That's what he says in his first book, when he explains how he ended up assigned to HMCE.
Mind you the book content is not uninteresting, but nothing you can't find anywhere else through open sources. Which confirmed my impression of a very relative field "expertise" from the author.

A great place to start, 03 May 2005
This is clearly designed to be an introduction to the subject for the general public so I suppose specialists will know much of what is in here, but even so it is an excellent read, especially good for dipping into rather than reading cover to cover. It is also a fascinating book because it is the only one about the craft of spying written by a real former MI6 officer. The emphasis of the book (the manipulation of people rather than use of bugs and gadgets) is intriguing. But the big question is: what happened to the TV series which the book was supposed to accompany? It's sounds as though it would have been great, but I never even heard that it was on.

the reality of spying, 19 Jan 2005
So many books on espionage concentrate on James Bond style gadgets. This book avoids that and,as well as chapters defining what intelligence is, developing a cover or new identity,and surveillance and countersurveillance, it has excellent information on the core of espionage which is agent recruitment. This book stresses how to build relationships or if you want to be cynical about it,how to manipulate people.
Forget the movies and read this book written by an ex-MI6 officer.

Boring and repetitive, 14 Apr 2008
This book appears to be written by someone who worked in Northern Ireland but there are a number of anomolies which indicate they were not as involved as they claim.

Beware the first three quarters of the book is taken up with extremely dull detail about special forces training which will be nothing new to you if you have any of the SAS books previously.



And you think the SAS have it tough? , 13 Feb 2008
This book was a real eye opener. I recently discovered a copy of this book and having read many of the SAS real life stories, did not really know what to expect.

What comes across is an in-depth look at an elite unit that most people know very little about. A unit so secret that they use false names and know very little about the other people they serve with. The book covers in detail the training, selection and the gruelling punishment this poses to those involved. This really is a "make one mistake and you are out" mentality.

That a unit as covert as the 14 Company, who actually take on and train members of the SAS, can have received very little published notoriety says a lot in itself. The members of these units have a job to do. A job that is genuinely dangerous and life threatening on a day to day basis. All the more difficult when you have to not only memorise an A-Z in depth, but know how to communicate to multiple moving Operatives at the same time in an urban or country environment, using a covert language - and be ready to enter a lethal fire fight on a regular occurrence.

Experts in weapons, surveillance, photography, survival, driving and amongst the most physically fittest people in the forces, these people deserve all our respect for the job they do and get no recognition for.

I can see why this book was a Sunday Times Bestseller. Buy it.


Highly Recommended!!, 04 Dec 2006
Great read for any walk of life... It kept me gripped until the end, in fact I read it within a couple of days!

My advice would be to buy it, and enjoy!

Twelve Months In The Life Of...., 10 Jun 2006
Yeah, well ... Might be a part of the problem. The book REALLY starts in its last third, most of the pages before # 200 being devoted to an excrutiatingly precise, day-by-day, selection course.
It seems to me that Rennie has spent very little time with the Det, and has tried to jump on the bandwagon of Special Forces, terrorism -related book circuit, by exploiting as much as possible his year with 14 Intelligence Company.


And it shows in "The Operators" that Rennie has definitely very little of substance to write. The technical details, the detailing of almost every push-up session allows him to wrap up the 300 pages. Even in the last third of the book, which specifically relates to his months as an actual operator, he fills in the blanks by telling many stories that happened during the Troubles, stories he was not directly involved in.
Analysis, whether social or political, is little to none. Well, that might have been high expectations anyway, but at least, I would have liked to read something beyond the tech review and the procedurals of military intel.

Very disappointing from my point of view, except for the inconditional militaria reader.

This man did the business!, 31 Jan 2006
As a serviceman myself and having known a couple of people who have actually served with Special Forces units of one kind or another, it was with a fair amount of reserve that I started reading this book. Would it be Gung Ho, very 'Rupertish', or totally laughable and ludicrous like the book entitled "The Sixteen" written by an armchair warrior who didn't have a clue? (please see my review on Amazon.com). I thought I would give the man a chance and I was very pleased to be able to report that it is one of the best accounts of selection, training and follow up operations in the Northern Ireland Province that I have ever read. A lot of the weapons, logistics and equipment details I knew to be true from my own experiences in the Armed Forces but I did in fact cross-check the training and slightly 'shadier' aspects within the content of the book with an ex-Royal Marine pal of mine who actually served with the 'Detachment'. Whilst my pal was still very guarded and utterly professional about it all, he confirmed that everything that I'd asked him regarding this unit and what he thought of the writer's knowledge and experiences seemed very bona fide and although James Rennie was most definitely of the 'Rupert'(Officer) variety he was without doubt made of very stern stuff, totally committed, went through the mill and did the business when it mattered. A real eye opener for the general public, military historians and potential SF applicants! An absolutely excellent read. Buy it!

No Secret: Stella Rules, Britannia, 14 Mar 2008
I purchased this book after hearing an interview with Ms. Rimington on BBC 4, and I must say, I found her engaging both on the radio and in print. She is a talented writer, whose eventful life--from childhood during the blitz, through her days as a diplomatic wife in India; her experiences as an archivist; and her almost accidental career in MI5 [the old-school-tie male bastion which she penetrated with panache]--is related with considerable charm and humor (essential requirements for being an effective spy).

On the back of the book, under a series of rave blurbs is a negative one by an individual of the male persuasion, whose non-endorsement guaranteed my determination to read the book. And I quote: "The most effective Secret Service is the one which is secret. She should shut up."

Well, that horse was stolen from the barn years ago, and the service that once dared not speak its name has long since--thanks to ex-intelligence officers writing their memoirs right and left--become the service that will not shut up!

Stella Rimington, the intelligent woman who made it to the director-generalship of MI5, adds a refreshing perspective to the male-dominated literature of British intelligence.

Slow start but very worthwhile, 21 Dec 2007
Despite the headline I have given, this book is interesting throughout. The reason I have said it starts slowly is that the first part of the book does not deal with Ms Rimmington's time working for MI5.

Nevertheless the book as a whole is a fascinating autobiography. Her career is so different to mainstream careers that it is worth reading for a small insight into the world of the intelligence services. As one of the other reviewers comments, some of the incidents described in the book are rather "everyday" but, unlike that reviewer, I think such incidents make Ms Rimmington sound more down-to-earth and consequently credible than would otherwise be the case.

I also do not think the book is harmful, but instead, to the extent it deals with Ms Rimmington's time at MI5 it sets out in a clear and concise way the political and societal contexts in which MI5 operates have changed dramatically since the 1960s. In fact it is this which makes the book so interesting since, as anyone should have been able to guess before reading it, the book was extremely unlikely to reveal any operational information or anything but the most general details about operations.

My one criticism is that Ms Rimmington's time in charge of MI5 is only briefly described, although perhaps this is unavoidable on security grounds.

Definitely one of the top books I've read this year.

avoid, 18 Nov 2007
I would recommend you purchase 'Spies, Lies and Whistleblowers' instead for a more realistic and earthy view of MI5.

Less threat-analysis, more biographical, 17 Jun 2003
The preface to the paperback edition of Open Secret talks of the challenges the security forces face combatting global terrorism. It's an interesting analysis of the problems facing governments and democracies worldwide but, unfortunately, it doesn't really set the tone for the rest of the book. The remainder is less threat-analysis and much more biographical.

The very personal nature of the book, and thus the lack of James Bond style bad-guy chasing, is only a disappointment to those who haven't read anything about it. Open Secret does not set itself up to be a great spy catcher novel. It is the truly fascinating tale of a woman who appeared to join the Secret Service because she couldn't really think of anything else to do and became the "housewife super-spy".

Stella Rimington nicely touches on some of the history if MI5 and its role during the wars (world and cold) without turning Open Secret into a detailed historical work. It's not a technical manual for sleuths either, nor does it contain the great revelations about our Secret Services than some have made out. It is a wonderful insight into the workings of a world that, at least for the part of her time, Stella could not admit existed. She tells of the struggles to bring up a family single-handed while battling the internal workings of a Service that did not expect women to rise to the top. It's a fascinating insight and, perhaps, inspiring to some. Certainly it's a book that, this reader at least, is very glad made got through the censorship.

No hesitation in recommending as a biography, 11 Oct 2002
This is a biography of the woman who ran MI5. It isn't a novel by Tom Clancy and it isn't a full analysis of the structure and methods of the Security Services.

It gives insight into the mind and values of the woman who was very successful within the security services of the 1970's and 1980's. She shows modesty and commitment - rising from part-time Office junior to Head of the Service via hard work and personal sacrifice (especially family relationships and financial).

The book tells us much about English attitudes, the cult of the 'Amateur,' and how many fall by the wayside on the path to the top - lacking commitment or realising that the effort is not justified by the reward.

It will make you question how and why people get to the top in British politics and administration. Americans, in particular, will be stunned by her candour (and poverty)

We need more books like this - real biographies talking about genuine biographical issues as opposed to post-rationalised self-promotion. With more women taking the top roles in Society, let's hope we will get these more honest stories.

The inspiration for Fleming's Bond?, 15 Jul 2008
If you like adventure then you can't go far wrong with this book. During World War II, petty East End criminal Eddie Chapman finds himself banged up in occupied Jersey's prison. He is given a lifeline that he cannot refuse - come and work for German secret intelligence as a spy or face the consequences. Eddie opts for the former and is thrown into the grandiose world of a German spymaster. Now he is faced with the moral dilemma of double-crossing his country or the gamble of double crossing his new found boss. You'll have to read the book to find out which choice he makes ... I thoroughly recommend this book!



Well written but lacks of characters' in-depth analysis, 15 Jul 2008
The book is well written. The author limits himself to analyzing events based on first-hand evidence: on the one hand this allows to draw a very faithful picture of agent Zig Zag's wartime adventures. On the other hand however, this method discourage the author from trying to investigate in-depth motivations and convictions of agent Zig Zag.

Fritz, 24 May 2008

Agent Zigzag, a Review by the
Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club







When one of the most wanted men in Britain escaped police by jumping through a Jersey hotel window he leaped into a new career, an Englishman whose deeds were to be heard and applauded by both The Fuehrer and Winston Churchill.

Hitler knew him as Little Fritz; the blue-eyed boy of the Abwher, the Nazi secret service and Churchill was impressed by his exploit, for he was spying for Britain, too, under the codename Agent Zigzag. Eddie Arnold Chapman was, a rising star in the Soho world of gangsters, and, in the twilight days of peace in early l939, a dark haired, handsome young man, destined it seemed, to spend many years behind bars.
He was a care rogue, a womaniser, a leading figure in the mob known as "The Jelly Gang" for their habit of using gelignite to blow safes. He could have been a prototype for 007 James Bond. His girlfriend was pregnant and he was with another woman when the police found him in the Channel Islands. He was captured, eventually and jailed, managed to rob the Governor and then the Germans invaded and he found himself in a Nazi prison camp outside Paris. He was already a bit of a linguist, having picked up basic German and French.
The harsh regime did not appeal so Chapman offered his services to the goose steppers; after lengthy Teutonic thought, the SS the Abwher decided he was genuine. They trained him to be one of their spies in England He graduated from a Nazi school for spies, in France with honours and made many friends, especially his boss, a somewhat aristocratic chap who kept him well supplied with cash. Chapman, naturally, quickly found that boss man was taking his cut from the thousands of Reich marks he was handing over. It takes a crook to know a crook.
The Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club thought Agent Zigzag by journalist Ben Macintyre a very entertaining read, a combination of Bond and Biggles. Fritz, parachuting at night and landing in a muddy Cambridgeshire field and naively banging on a farmhouse door and saying he had been in a car accident. MI5who turned him into their man picked him up. Money changed hands.
Fritz blowing up the De Havilland factory where the wonder plane, the Mosquito was made,
the staged attack being arranged by MI5 experts to fool the Germans.
The stubborn Englishness of the Editor of The Times in refusing to print an untruthful report, which would have fooled the enemy into believing Fritz, was doing good work. . Not a problem for the patriotic Daily Express!
Fritz still has that swashbuckling air about him, he returns to his German group leader and friend by sea, and seemingly reverts to the Nazi regime. Back in Germany and many more adventures, he finds love again in Norway with the beautiful Dagmar. Just as he arranged with MI5 to pay a good "pension" to his woman, so now he does the same for his new love, with the Germans!
He parachutes back into Britain with the brief to track down the new anti-U-boat weapon that is causing devastation to the wolf packs. Such a device only exists in the Nazi imagination, of course and the boffins think up a hilarious device that is pure Monty Python or The Goons, just to give the enemy something to think about. The secret weapon was, of course, the Bletchley Park code breaker.
Had the stakes not been so huge, Agent Zigzag would have been a biting satirical piece of work, yet, it is the gripping life story of courageous con man who reverted to type at war's end to thieving and safe breaking and, naturally, womanising. A crook, but our crook. As his MI5 boss said, "One of the bravest men I have ever met."
Oh, yes, and old Adolf probably thought much the same. Eddie Arnold Chapman was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class.
Chapman, born in the North East, was a charismatic crook made good by his courage and apparent indifference to personal suffering. He mixed with the great and the good but he was never a Gentleman, he was a spy who did a great service for his country in her time of need.


All, especially the ladies, loved him. It could have been men like Chapman who inspired a Naval Intelligence officer, one Ian Fleming, to create James Bond. Agent Zigzag did not have a licence to kill, officially, but he dreamed of assassinating Hitler!




The real deal, 16 Apr 2008
I recently read Europe at War which points out that quite frankly what won the war was the meat grinder of the Eastern Front. So no amount of cloak and dagger stuff carried out by Britain really made a big difference in the greater scheme of things. While this is true, this cannot hide the fact that Eddie Chapman's story is simply fascinating and one you are guaranteed to get swept up in.

This is the true story of a small time British crook who was recruited by the German war machine to go to Britain and spy. Only for him to become a double agent and in turn spy on the Germans after his return from a "successful mission".

It is written like a comedy thriller and you do have to keep reminding yourself that this all actually happened. It is rip-roaring stuff making you live every moment of fear, tension and laughter too.

This is brilliant non-fiction. Highly readable, educational and should be turned into a great BBC mini-series.


Puts James Bond Shame , 15 Apr 2008
All that needs to be said about this book is that if you like a good story, read it. The best bit of it all is it is all true. This amazing story would be dismissed as too far fetched if it were fiction, the truth is stranger than fiction they say and this certainly is.

MI6 huh ?, 01 Sep 2005
I had read "Kilo17", and was very surprised to find out about this book from Ferguson. Well, really, how much of an expert can he pretend to be, given he has barely spent a year or two with 6 ?
That's what he says in his first book, when he explains how he ended up assigned to HMCE.
Mind you the book content is not uninteresting, but nothing you can't find anywhere else through open sources. Which confirmed my impression of a very relative field "expertise" from the author.

A great place to start, 03 May 2005
This is clearly designed to be an introduction to the subject for the general public so I suppose specialists will know much of what is in here, but even so it is an excellent read, especially good for dipping into rather than reading cover to cover. It is also a fascinating book because it is the only one about the craft of spying written by a real former MI6 officer. The emphasis of the book (the manipulation of people rather than use of bugs and gadgets) is intriguing. But the big question is: what happened to the TV series which the book was supposed to accompany? It's sounds as though it would have been great, but I never even heard that it was on.

the reality of spying, 19 Jan 2005
So many books on espionage concentrate on James Bond style gadgets. This book avoids that and,as well as chapters defining what intelligence is, developing a cover or new identity,and surveillance and countersurveillance, it has excellent information on the core of espionage which is agent recruitment. This book stresses how to build relationships or if you want to be cynical about it,how to manipulate people.
Forget the movies and read this book written by an ex-MI6 officer.

Boring and repetitive, 14 Apr 2008
This book appears to be written by someone who worked in Northern Ireland but there are a number of anomolies which indicate they were not as involved as they claim.

Beware the first three quarters of the book is taken up with extremely dull detail about special forces training which will be nothing new to you if you have any of the SAS books previously.



And you think the SAS have it tough? , 13 Feb 2008
This book was a real eye opener. I recently discovered a copy of this book and having read many of the SAS real life stories, did not really know what to expect.

What comes across is an in-depth look at an elite unit that most people know very little about. A unit so secret that they use false names and know very little about the other people they serve with. The book covers in detail the training, selection and the gruelling punishment this poses to those involved. This really is a "make one mistake and you are out" mentality.

That a unit as covert as the 14 Company, who actually take on and train members of the SAS, can have received very little published notoriety says a lot in itself. The members of these units have a job to do. A job that is genuinely dangerous and life threatening on a day to day basis. All the more difficult when you have to not only memorise an A-Z in depth, but know how to communicate to multiple moving Operatives at the same time in an urban or country environment, using a covert language - and be ready to enter a lethal fire fight on a regular occurrence.

Experts in weapons, surveillance, photography, survival, driving and amongst the most physically fittest people in the forces, these people deserve all our respect for the job they do and get no recognition for.

I can see why this book was a Sunday Times Bestseller. Buy it.


Highly Recommended!!, 04 Dec 2006
Great read for any walk of life... It kept me gripped until the end, in fact I read it within a couple of days!

My advice would be to buy it, and enjoy!

Twelve Months In The Life Of...., 10 Jun 2006
Yeah, well ... Might be a part of the problem. The book REALLY starts in its last third, most of the pages before # 200 being devoted to an excrutiatingly precise, day-by-day, selection course.
It seems to me that Rennie has spent very little time with the Det, and has tried to jump on the bandwagon of Special Forces, terrorism -related book circuit, by exploiting as much as possible his year with 14 Intelligence Company.


And it shows in "The Operators" that Rennie has definitely very little of substance to write. The technical details, the detailing of almost every push-up session allows him to wrap up the 300 pages. Even in the last third of the book, which specifically relates to his months as an actual operator, he fills in the blanks by telling many stories that happened during the Troubles, stories he was not directly involved in.
Analysis, whether social or political, is little to none. Well, that might have been high expectations anyway, but at least, I would have liked to read something beyond the tech review and the procedurals of military intel.

Very disappointing from my point of view, except for the inconditional militaria reader.

This man did the business!, 31 Jan 2006
As a serviceman myself and having known a couple of people who have actually served with Special Forces units of one kind or another, it was with a fair amount of reserve that I started reading this book. Would it be Gung Ho, very 'Rupertish', or totally laughable and ludicrous like the book entitled "The Sixteen" written by an armchair warrior who didn't have a clue? (please see my review on Amazon.com). I thought I would give the man a chance and I was very pleased to be able to report that it is one of the best accounts of selection, training and follow up operations in the Northern Ireland Province that I have ever read. A lot of the weapons, logistics and equipment details I knew to be true from my own experiences in the Armed Forces but I did in fact cross-check the training and slightly 'shadier' aspects within the content of the book with an ex-Royal Marine pal of mine who actually served with the 'Detachment'. Whilst my pal was still very guarded and utterly professional about it all, he confirmed that everything that I'd asked him regarding this unit and what he thought of the writer's knowledge and experiences seemed very bona fide and although James Rennie was most definitely of the 'Rupert'(Officer) variety he was without doubt made of very stern stuff, totally committed, went through the mill and did the business when it mattered. A real eye opener for the general public, military historians and potential SF applicants! An absolutely excellent read. Buy it!

No Secret: Stella Rules, Britannia, 14 Mar 2008
I purchased this book after hearing an interview with Ms. Rimington on BBC 4, and I must say, I found her engaging both on the radio and in print. She is a talented writer, whose eventful life--from childhood during the blitz, through her days as a diplomatic wife in India; her experiences as an archivist; and her almost accidental career in MI5 [the old-school-tie male bastion which she penetrated with panache]--is related with considerable charm and humor (essential requirements for being an effective spy).

On the back of the book, under a series of rave blurbs is a negative one by an individual of the male persuasion, whose non-endorsement guaranteed my determination to read the book. And I quote: "The most effective Secret Service is the one which is secret. She should shut up."

Well, that horse was stolen from the barn years ago, and the service that once dared not speak its name has long since--thanks to ex-intelligence officers writing their memoirs right and left--become the service that will not shut up!

Stella Rimington, the intelligent woman who made it to the director-generalship of MI5, adds a refreshing perspective to the male-dominated literature of British intelligence.

Slow start but very worthwhile, 21 Dec 2007
Despite the headline I have given, this book is interesting throughout. The reason I have said it starts slowly is that the first part of the book does not deal with Ms Rimmington's time working for MI5.

Nevertheless the book as a whole is a fascinating autobiography. Her career is so different to mainstream careers that it is worth reading for a small insight into the world of the intelligence services. As one of the other reviewers comments, some of the incidents described in the book are rather "everyday" but, unlike that reviewer, I think such incidents make Ms Rimmington sound more down-to-earth and consequently credible than would otherwise be the case.

I also do not think the book is harmful, but instead, to the extent it deals with Ms Rimmington's time at MI5 it sets out in a clear and concise way the political and societal contexts in which MI5 operates have changed dramatically since the 1960s. In fact it is this which makes the book so interesting since, as anyone should have been able to guess before reading it, the book was extremely unlikely to reveal any operational information or anything but the most general details about operations.

My one criticism is that Ms Rimmington's time in charge of MI5 is only briefly described, although perhaps this is unavoidable on security grounds.

Definitely one of the top books I've read this year.

avoid, 18 Nov 2007
I would recommend you purchase 'Spies, Lies and Whistleblowers' instead for a more realistic and earthy view of MI5.

Less threat-analysis, more biographical, 17 Jun 2003
The preface to the paperback edition of Open Secret talks of the challenges the security forces face combatting global terrorism. It's an interesting analysis of the problems facing governments and democracies worldwide but, unfortunately, it doesn't really set the tone for the rest of the book. The remainder is less threat-analysis and much more biographical.

The very personal nature of the book, and thus the lack of James Bond style bad-guy chasing, is only a disappointment to those who haven't read anything about it. Open Secret does not set itself up to be a great spy catcher novel. It is the truly fascinating tale of a woman who appeared to join the Secret Service because she couldn't really think of anything else to do and became the "housewife super-spy".

Stella Rimington nicely touches on some of the history if MI5 and its role during the wars (world and cold) without turning Open Secret into a detailed historical work. It's not a technical manual for sleuths either, nor does it contain the great revelations about our Secret Services than some have made out. It is a wonderful insight into the workings of a world that, at least for the part of her time, Stella could not admit existed. She tells of the struggles to bring up a family single-handed while battling the internal workings of a Service that did not expect women to rise to the top. It's a fascinating insight and, perhaps, inspiring to some. Certainly it's a book that, this reader at least, is very glad made got through the censorship.

No hesitation in recommending as a biography, 11 Oct 2002
This is a biography of the woman who ran MI5. It isn't a novel by Tom Clancy and it isn't a full analysis of the structure and methods of the Security Services.

It gives insight into the mind and values of the woman who was very successful within the security services of the 1970's and 1980's. She shows modesty and commitment - rising from part-time Office junior to Head of the Service via hard work and personal sacrifice (especially family relationships and financial).

The book tells us much about English attitudes, the cult of the 'Amateur,' and how many fall by the wayside on the path to the top - lacking commitment or realising that the effort is not justified by the reward.

It will make you question how and why people get to the top in British politics and administration. Americans, in particular, will be stunned by her candour (and poverty)

We need more books like this - real biographies talking about genuine biographical issues as opposed to post-rationalised self-promotion. With more women taking the top roles in Society, let's hope we will get these more honest stories.

good story, 23 Jul 2008
Colin is definetly ex army:he knows the drills. Whether he is ex SF is oprn to some interpretation.
The story is excellent; the historical references are public knowledge.
I can't prove or disprove this book.I want it to be real.
As an 'armchair warrior' (I wish it were different) with forces experience, I can feel the reality.
I wish you luck mate !
Never one to water anothers barbeque !
Baaaaaah (as general Melchitt would have said )

MOD

lucky man, 08 Jul 2008
hello colin, i recognise them feet anywhere lol! hope all going well now your outa there! been a few years!nice book, anymore in the pipeline?

all the best,

dan

WELL WRITTEN AND ENTERTAINING, 16 Apr 2008
I REALLY ENJOYED THIS BOOK. THERE'S A LOT OF THESE EX-SAS/MILITARY BOKS AND A LOT OF THEM ARE CRAP. I LOVED MCNAB AND RYAN BOOKS, BUT SO MANY TRY TO BE THAT BUT ARE WAY OFF THE MARK AND COMPETE BULL. THIS IS DIFFERENT - COLIN GETS INVOLVED IN ALL OF THE TROUBLES IN AFGHAN IN A LESS CONVENTIONAL WAY, WHICH EADS TO A SHOOT OUT AND PRISON TIME BEING SERVED IN STINK AFGHAN JAIL. IM SURE THERE'S SOME FICTION ADDED TO SPICE IT UP A LITTE, BUT SHOW ME A BOOK IN THIS VEIN WHERE IT HASN'T. EXCITING AND HIGHLY ENTERTAINING TO READ, ALTHOUGH MUST HAVE BEEN HELL TO LIVE. MUST READ............

Well worth a read!, 10 Mar 2008
A well written account of events in Afghanistan. I found this hard to put down.

The tales of torture and abandonment made you feel for Colin Berry. In places it is shocking to read about the ways one human being can treat another.

Even so, I would definitely recommend this.


Disappointing, 28 Oct 2007
This comes across mainly as a "boy's own" adventure tale gone wrong, although there is no denying Colin Berry's suffering while doing time in an Afghan prison. Perhaps if he had done his homework he would never have gone there in the first place, what did he expect? The book paints a very narrow and negative picture of Afghans and Afghanistan and the author appears to have very little empathy or sympathy for a people that have battled the odds against 30 years of war and conflict.

The inspiration for Fleming's Bond?, 15 Jul 2008
If you like adventure then you can't go far wrong with this book. During World War II, petty East End criminal Eddie Chapman finds himself banged up in occupied Jersey's prison. He is given a lifeline that he cannot refuse - come and work for German secret intelligence as a spy or face the consequences. Eddie opts for the former and is thrown into the grandiose world of a German spymaster. Now he is faced with the moral dilemma of double-crossing his country or the gamble of double crossing his new found boss. You'll have to read the book to find out which choice he makes ... I thoroughly recommend this book!



Well written but lacks of characters' in-depth analysis, 15 Jul 2008
The book is well written. The author limits himself to analyzing events based on first-hand evidence: on the one hand this allows to draw a very faithful picture of agent Zig Zag's wartime adventures. On the other hand however, this method discourage the author from trying to investigate in-depth motivations and convictions of agent Zig Zag.

Fritz, 24 May 2008

Agent Zigzag, a Review by the
Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club







When one of the most wanted men in Britain escaped police by jumping through a Jersey hotel window he leaped into a new career, an Englishman whose deeds were to be heard and applauded by both The Fuehrer and Winston Churchill.

Hitler knew him as Little Fritz; the blue-eyed boy of the Abwher, the Nazi secret service and Churchill was impressed by his exploit, for he was spying for Britain, too, under the codename Agent Zigzag. Eddie Arnold Chapman was, a rising star in the Soho world of gangsters, and, in the twilight days of peace in early l939, a dark haired, handsome young man, destined it seemed, to spend many years behind bars.
He was a care rogue, a womaniser, a leading figure in the mob known as "The Jelly Gang" for their habit of using gelignite to blow safes. He could have been a prototype for 007 James Bond. His girlfriend was pregnant and he was with another woman when the police found him in the Channel Islands. He was captured, eventually and jailed, managed to rob the Governor and then the Germans invaded and he found himself in a Nazi prison camp outside Paris. He was already a bit of a linguist, having picked up basic German and French.
The harsh regime did not appeal so Chapman offered his services to the goose steppers; after lengthy Teutonic thought, the SS the Abwher decided he was genuine. They trained him to be one of their spies in England He graduated from a Nazi school for spies, in France with honours and made many friends, especially his boss, a somewhat aristocratic chap who kept him well supplied with cash. Chapman, naturally, quickly found that boss man was taking his cut from the thousands of Reich marks he was handing over. It takes a crook to know a crook.
The Cote d'Azur Men's Book Club thought Agent Zigzag by journalist Ben Macintyre a very entertaining read, a combination of Bond and Biggles. Fritz, parachuting at night and landing in a muddy Cambridgeshire field and naively banging on a farmhouse door and saying he had been in a car accident. MI5who turned him into their man picked him up. Money changed hands.
Fritz blowing up the De Havilland factory where the wonder plane, the Mosquito was made,
the staged attack being arranged by MI5 experts to fool the Germans.
The stubborn Englishness of the Editor of The Times in refusing to print an untruthful report, which would have fooled the enemy into believing Fritz, was doing good work. . Not a problem for the patriotic Daily Express!
Fritz still has that swashbuckling air about him, he returns to his German group leader and friend by sea, and seemingly reverts to the Nazi regime. Back in Germany and many more adventures, he finds love again in Norway with the beautiful Dagmar. Just as he arranged with MI5 to pay a good "pension" to his woman, so now he does the same for his new love, with the Germans!
He parachutes back into Britain with the brief to track down the new anti-U-boat weapon that is causing devastation to the wolf packs. Such a device only exists in the Nazi imagination, of course and the boffins think up a hilarious device that is pure Monty Python or The Goons, just to give the enemy something to think about. The secret weapon was, of course, the Bletchley Park code breaker.
Had the stakes not been so huge, Agent Zigzag would have been a biting satirical piece of work, yet, it is the gripping life story of courageous con man who reverted to type at war's end to thieving and safe breaking and, naturally, womanising. A crook, but our crook. As his MI5 boss said, "One of the bravest men I have ever met."
Oh, yes, and old Adolf probably thought much the same. Eddie Arnold Chapman was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class.
Chapman, born in the North East, was a charismatic crook made good by his courage and apparent indifference to personal suffering. He mixed with the great and the good but he was never a Gentleman, he was a spy who did a great service for his country in her time of need.


All, especially the ladies, loved him. It could have been men like Chapman who inspired a Naval Intelligence officer, one Ian Fleming, to create James Bond. Agent Zigzag did not have a licence to kill, officially, but he dreamed of assassinating Hitler!




The real deal, 16 Apr 2008
I recently read Europe at War which points out that quite frankly what won the war was the meat grinder of the Eastern Front. So no amount of cloak and dagger stuff carried out by Britain really made a big difference in the greater scheme of things. While this is true, this cannot hide the fact that Eddie Chapman's story is simply fascinating and one you are guaranteed to get swept up in.

This is the true story of a small time British crook who was recruited by the German war machine to go to Britain and spy. Only for him to become a double agent and in turn spy on the Germans after his return from a "successful mission".

It is written like a comedy thriller and you do have to keep reminding yourself that this all actually happened. It is rip-roaring stuff making you live every moment of fear, tension and laughter too.

This is brilliant non-fiction. Highly readable, educational and should be turned into a great BBC mini-series.


Puts James Bond Shame , 15 Apr 2008
All that needs to be said about this book is that if you like a good story, read it. The best bit of it all is it is all true. This amazing story would be dismissed as too far fetched if it were fiction, the truth is stranger than fiction they say and this certainly is.

MI6 huh ?, 01 Sep 2005
I had read "Kilo17", and was very surprised to find out about this book from Ferguson. Well, really, how much of an expert can he pretend to be, given he has barely spent a year or two with 6 ?
That's what he says in his first book, when he explains how he ended up assigned to HMCE.
Mind you the book content is not uninteresting, but nothing you can't find anywhere else through open sources. Which confirmed my impression of a very relative field "expertise" from the author.

A great place to start, 03 May 2005
This is clearly designed to be an introduction to the subject for the general public so I suppose specialists will know much of what is in here, but even so it is an excellent read, especially good for dipping into rather than reading cover to cover. It is also a fascinating book because it is the only one about the craft of spying written by a real former MI6 officer. The emphasis of the book (the manipulation of people rather than use of bugs and gadgets) is intriguing. But the big question is: what happened to the TV series which the book was supposed to accompany? It's sounds as though it would have been great, but I never even heard that it was on.

the reality of spying, 19 Jan 2005
So many books on espionage concentrate on James Bond style gadgets. This book avoids that and,as well as chapters defining what intelligence is, developing a cover or new identity,and surveillance and countersurveillance, it has excellent information on the core of espionage which is agent recruitment. This book stresses how to build relationships or if you want to be cynical about it,how to manipulate people.
Forget the movies and read this book written by an ex-MI6 officer.

Boring and repetitive, 14 Apr 2008
This book appears to be written by someone who worked in Northern Ireland but there are a number of anomolies which indicate they were not as involved as they claim.

Beware the first three quarters of the book is taken up with extremely dull detail about special forces training which will be nothing new to you if you have any of the SAS books previously.



And you think the SAS have it tough? , 13 Feb 2008
This book was a real eye opener. I recently discovered a copy of this book and having read many of the SAS real life stories, did not really know what to expect.

What comes across is an in-depth look at an elite unit that most people know very little about. A unit so secret that they use false names and know very little about the other people they serve with. The book covers in detail the training, selection and the gruelling punishment this poses to those involved. This really is a "make one mistake and you are out" mentality.

That a unit as covert as the 14 Company, who actually take on and train members of the SAS, can have received very little published notoriety says a lot in itself. The members of these units have a job to do. A job that is genuinely dangerous and life threatening on a day to day basis. All the more difficult when you have to not only memorise an A-Z in depth, but know how to communicate to multiple moving Operatives at the same time in an urban or country environment, using a covert language - and be ready to enter a lethal fire fight on a regular occurrence.

Experts in weapons, surveillance, photography, survival, driving and amongst the most physically fittest people in the forces, these people deserve all our respect for the job they do and get no recognition for.

I can see why this book was a Sunday Times Bestseller. Buy it.


Highly Recommended!!, 04 Dec 2006
Great read for any walk of life... It kept me gripped until the end, in fact I read it within a couple of days!

My advice would be to buy it, and enjoy!

Twelve Months In The Life Of...., 10 Jun 2006
Yeah, well ... Might be a part of the problem. The book REALLY starts in its last third, most of the pages before # 200 being devoted to an excrutiatingly precise, day-by-day, selection course.
It seems to me that Rennie has spent very little time with the Det, and has tried to jump on the bandwagon of Special Forces, terrorism -related book circuit, by exploiting as much as possible his year with 14 Intelligence Company.


And it shows in "The Operators" that Rennie has definitely very little of substance to write. The technical details, the detailing of almost every push-up session allows him to wrap up the 300 pages. Even in the last third of the book, which specifically relates to his months as an actual operator, he fills in the blanks by telling many stories that happened during the Troubles, stories he was not directly involved in.
Analysis, whether social or political, is little to none. Well, that might have been high expectations anyway, but at least, I would have liked to read something beyond the tech review and the procedurals of military intel.

Very disappointing from my point of view, except for the inconditional militaria reader.

This man did the business!, 31 Jan 2006
As a serviceman myself and having known a couple of people who have actually served with Special Forces units of one kind or another, it was with a fair amount of reserve that I started reading this book. Would it be Gung Ho, very 'Rupertish', or totally laughable and ludicrous like the book entitled "The Sixteen" written by an armchair warrior who didn't have a clue? (please see my review on Amazon.com). I thought I would give the man a chance and I was very pleased to be able to report that it is one of the best accounts of selection, training and follow up operations in the Northern Ireland Province that I have ever read. A lot of the weapons, logistics and equipment details I knew to be true from my own experiences in the Armed Forces but I did in fact cross-check the training and slightly 'shadier' aspects within the content of the book with an ex-Royal Marine pal of mine who actually served with the 'Detachment'. Whilst my pal was still very guarded and utterly professional about it all, he confirmed that everything that I'd asked him regarding this unit and what he thought of the writer's knowledge and experiences seemed very bona fide and although James Rennie was most definitely of the 'Rupert'(Officer) variety he was without doubt made of very stern stuff, totally committed, went through the mill and did the business when it mattered. A real eye opener for the general public, military historians and potential SF applicants! An absolutely excellent read. Buy it!

No Secret: Stella Rules, Britannia, 14 Mar 2008
I purchased this book after hearing an interview with Ms. Rimington on BBC 4, and I must say, I found her engaging both on the radio and in print. She is a talented writer, whose eventful life--from childhood during the blitz, through her days as a diplomatic wife in India; her experiences as an archivist; and her almost accidental career in MI5 [the old-school-tie male bastion which she penetrated with panache]--is related with considerable charm and humor (essential requirements for being an effective spy).

On the back of the book, under a series of rave blurbs is a negative one by an individual of the male persuasion, whose non-endorsement guaranteed my determination to read the book. And I quote: "The most effective Secret Service is the one which is secret. She should shut up."

Well, that horse was stolen from the barn years ago, and the service that once dared not speak its name has long since--thanks to ex-intelligence officers writing their memoirs right and left--become the service that will not shut up!

Stella Rimington, the intelligent woman who made it to the director-generalship of MI5, adds a refreshing perspective to the male-dominated literature of British intelligence.

Slow start but very worthwhile, 21 Dec 2007
Despite the headline I have given, this book is interesting throughout. The reason I have said it starts slowly is that the first part of the book does not deal with Ms Rimmington's time working for MI5.

Nevertheless the book as a whole is a fascinating autobiography. Her career is so different to mainstream careers that it is worth reading for a small insight into the world of the intelligence services. As one of the other reviewers comments, some of the incidents described in the book are rather "everyday" but, unlike that reviewer, I think such incidents make Ms Rimmington sound more down-to-earth and consequently credible than would otherwise be the case.

I also do not think the book is harmful, but instead, to the extent it deals with Ms Rimmington's time at MI5 it sets out in a clear and concise way the political and societal contexts in which MI5 operates have changed dramatically since the 1960s. In fact it is this which makes the book so interesting since, as anyone should have been able to guess before reading it, the book was extremely unlikely to reveal any operational information or anything but the most general details about operations.

My one criticism is that Ms Rimmington's time in charge of MI5 is only briefly described, although perhaps this is unavoidable on security grounds.

Definitely one of the top books I've read this year.

avoid, 18 Nov 2007
I would recommend you purchase 'Spies, Lies and Whistleblowers' instead for a more realistic and earthy view of MI5.

Less threat-analysis, more biographical, 17 Jun 2003
The preface to the paperback edition of Open Secret talks of the challenges the security forces face combatting global terrorism. It's an interesting analysis of the problems facing governments and democracies worldwide but, unfortunately, it doesn't really set the tone for the rest of the book. The remainder is less threat-analysis and much more biographical.

The very personal nature of the book, and thus the lack of James Bond style bad-guy chasing, is only a disappointment to those who haven't read anything about it. Open Secret does not set itself up to be a great spy catcher novel. It is the truly fascinating tale of a woman who appeared to join the Secret Service because she couldn't really think of anything else to do and became the "housewife super-spy".

Stella Rimington nicely touches on some of the history if MI5 and its role during the wars (world and cold) without turning Open Secret into a detailed historical work. It's not a technical manual for sleuths either, nor does it contain the great revelations about our Secret Services than some have made out. It is a wonderful insight into the workings of a world that, at least for the part of her time, Stella could not admit existed. She tells of the struggles to bring up a family single-handed while battling the internal workings of a Service that did not expect women to rise to the top. It's a fascinating insight and, perhaps, inspiring to some. Certainly it's a book that, this reader at least, is very glad made got through the censorship.

No hesitation in recommending as a biography, 11 Oct 2002
This is a biography of the woman who ran MI5. It isn't a novel by Tom Clancy and it isn't a full analysis of the structure and methods of the Security Services.

It gives insight into the mind and values of the woman who was very successful within the security services of the 1970's and 1980's. She shows modesty and commitment - rising from part-time Office junior to Head of the Service via hard work and personal sacrifice (especially family relationships and financial).

The book tells us much about English attitudes, the cult of the 'Amateur,' and how many fall by the wayside on the path to the top - lacking commitment or realising that the effort is not justified by the reward.

It will make you question how and why people get to the top in British politics and administration. Americans, in particular, will be stunned by her candour (and poverty)

We need more books like this - real biographies talking about genuine biographical issues as opposed to post-rationalised self-promotion. With more women taking the top roles in Society, let's hope we will get these more honest stories.

good story, 23 Jul 2008
Colin is definetly ex army:he knows the drills. Whether he is ex SF is oprn to some interpretation.
The story is excellent; the historical references are public knowledge.
I can't prove or disprove this book.I want it to be real.
As an 'armchair warrior' (I wish it were different) with forces experience, I can feel the reality.
I wish you luck mate !
Never one to water anothers barbeque !
Baaaaaah (as general Melchitt would have said )

MOD

lucky man, 08 Jul 2008
hello colin, i recognise them feet anywhere lol! hope all going well now your outa there! been a few years!nice book, anymore in the pipeline?

all the best,

dan

WELL WRITTEN AND ENTERTAINING, 16 Apr 2008
I REALLY ENJOYED THIS BOOK. THERE'S A LOT OF THESE EX-SAS/MILITARY BOKS AND A LOT OF THEM ARE CRAP. I LOVED MCNAB AND RYAN BOOKS, BUT SO MANY TRY TO BE THAT BUT ARE WAY OFF THE MARK AND COMPETE BULL. THIS IS DIFFERENT - COLIN GETS INVOLVED IN ALL OF THE TROUBLES IN AFGHAN IN A LESS CONVENTIONAL WAY, WHICH EADS TO A SHOOT OUT AND PRISON TIME BEING SERVED IN STINK AFGHAN JAIL. IM SURE THERE'S SOME FICTION ADDED TO SPICE IT UP A LITTE, BUT SHOW ME A BOOK IN THIS VEIN WHERE IT HASN'T. EXCITING AND HIGHLY ENTERTAINING TO READ, ALTHOUGH MUST HAVE BEEN HELL TO LIVE. MUST READ............

Well worth a read!, 10 Mar 2008
A well written account of events in Afghanistan. I found this hard to put down.

The tales of torture and abandonment made you feel for Colin Berry. In places it is shocking to read about the ways one human being can treat another.

Even so, I would definitely recommend this.


Disappointing, 28 Oct 2007
This comes across mainly as a "boy's own" adventure tale gone wrong, although there is no denying Colin Berry's suffering while doing time in an Afghan prison. Perhaps if he had done his homework he would never have gone there in the first place, what did he expect? The book paints a very narrow and negative picture of Afghans and Afghanistan and the author appears to have very little empathy or sympathy for a people that have battled the odds against 30 years of war and conflict.

Great for those interested in the human side of war, 15 Aug 2008
I am not a huge fan of the sort of military history books that concentrate on strategy and campaigns without showing what war is really like on a human level. It's the stories people tell that catch the imagination and help us to remember what war was really like for those involved in the fighting. Rod Bailey has searched the Imperial War Museum's archives to uncover and weave together some fascinating narratives from people who operated behind enemy lines all over the world during the Second World War. If you enjoy reading first-hand accounts of adventure and bravery and want to understand the thoughts and feelings, hopes and fears of ordinary people doing extraordinary things in wartime then I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Bailey has committed to print some of the most fascinating accounts of SOE activity during the Second World War. I am sure that those who contributed to the book, all who were associated with SOE then and now, their children and families will be proud to see their stories told and added to our history of the war. I look forward to reading more in the series.

Extracts Only, 28 Jul 2008
Not going to waffle. I got to page 20 and gave up. It is full of short extracts with no storyline at least none I could see. Some extracts are less than 10 lines and then - bang - on to someone elses. Perhaps some peoples type of book but not for me...

An apprecia