One of Karla’s greatest conspiracies. And it’s happening in England. Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy s1e2, bird
I have information crucial to the wellbeing of the Circus. ibid.
It’s the oldest question of all, George: Who can spy on the spies? ibid. big-knob with George in garden
My Gorgeous George. Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy s1e3, Connie
Poliakov was a star soldier … Poliakov is running an English mole. ibid.
I believe Control was here before me. ibid. George
Suppose Merlin is genuine? ibid.
Who is Merlin? What’s going on? ibid. George to personnel geezer
I don’t nearly have enough on Testify. Would you? Tinker, Taylor, Solider, Spy s1e4, George to Peter
If Karla had a deal with him, do you think you and I would be alive and well and living in hope? Not by now I think. ibid.
Wouldn’t you prefer to ask us for protection? ibid. early flashback George to Gasman/Karla
I’d rather be my kind of fool than his. ibid. George in street
Everybody has a loyalty somewhere. ibid. George
It seems they were shot. The story is you blew them to save your own skin. I know that isn’t true of course. Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy s1e5, George in bedroom
So Toby actually mentioned Tinker, Taylor. How ever did he get hold of that? ibid. George in jam-jar
So we’re expecting a pearl, are we, Peter? Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy s1e6, spy to spy in bedroom
So why pick on the little guy? ibid. Toby
A dog’s life you must have been leading running between them all. ibid. George to Toby
You! You butchered my agents! Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy s1e7, spy to personnel bloke as mole
We need to salvage whatever is left of the networks he’s betrayed. ibid. George
Because it was necessary. ibid.
I hate America very deeply. The economic repression of the masses institutionalised. ibid.
There have been times also when I doubted your existence. Don’t let me doubt the existence of my daughter. Smiley’s People I starring Alec Guinness & Eileen Atkins & Michael Byrne & Bernard Hepton & Anthony Bate & Barry Foster & Michael Lonsdale & Beryl Reid & Bill Paterson & Patrick Stewart et al, director Simon Langton, BBC 1982
A meeting or nothing. I must insist on Moscow rules … Tell this to Max. ibid.
Oddbins: since your day it’s been a sort of operational pool. ibid.
Vladimir wasn’t expensive; he wasn’t an indulgence either … one of the best agents we ever had … He dreamed of the great Russian liberalisation; he got Stalin instead. ibid. George
He said, Tell Max it concerns the Sandman. ibid.
You haven’t been talking to anyone on the other side of the business, have you? Anyone help you get rid of a tiresome old man who is making a bore of himself. Smiley’s People II
He received a letter here to this address. It was from Paris, Max. Addressed to the General personally, not Mr Miller. I pressed him: he claimed it was a military secret. ibid.
Who’s the second man, Toby? Who is he? Smiley’s People III, George
I didn’t know we had any angels. ibid.
Otto Leipzig is dead … He asked you to look after the product of his blackmail operation. Smiley’s People IV, George
I’ve seen idiots get promoted with a dazzling regularity. All I’m left with is me. Thirty years of Cold War without the option. ibid.
So what is Karla up to? Smiley’s People V, blond Spy to George
Oh, I thought I’d take off and wander. ibid. George
Your philanderings in the embassy have put your domestic arrangements in grave danger. Smiley’s People VI, spy to Soviet diplomat
You were describing how you were approached by Moscow Centre. ibid.
The British Intelligence service works like a gentleman’s club. Cambridge Spies I II III IV, BBC 2003
1951: The scoop of the decade: The flight of Cambridge spies Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean was a huge embarrassment for Britain’s security services and threatened their close relations with Washington. Document: GCHQ: Keeping the Last Great Secret, BBC Radio 4 2012
A briefcase left lying on the floor of a pub: inside was a notebook containing highly classified information … ibid.
In late August 1968 Soviet troops invaded Czechoslovakia … It seems the British coverage enraged Moscow because on December 17th of that year the Soviet propaganda machine went into overdrive … Document: MI6 and the Media, BBC Radio 4 2013
A list of codenames of MI6 officers assigned to liaise with named British journalists. All the codenames start with three letters BIN. Another document the East Germans published suggested that the BBC were broadcasting coded messages on behalf of British intelligence. ibid.
Political turmoil and secret operations in Egypt and Syria and Sudan … An extraordinary document recently discovered in the national archives by Doctor Rory Cormac of the University of Nottingham. Document: MI6’s Secret Slush Fund, Radio 4 2017
MI6 has a [1950s] top-secret unofficial … slush fund … £1.4 million … In June 1953 they let the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rab Butler in on the secret. ibid.
Welcome to the world of British espionage, a top secret world of smoke and mirrors. Spy Secrets: Playing Dirty, 2003
An increasing amount of the intelligence services’ work is becoming public. ibid.
MI6 uses Black Ops throughout the world to try and change the political status quo. And they have quite a menu of techniques. ibid.
‘Any work that’s dangerous, physically dangerous, is not undertaken by MI6 but is undertaken by The Increment.’ ibid. Richard Tomlinson
While details of Group 13’s work in Northern Ireland remains classified, some black ops carried out in the province have now been exposed. ibid.
Steak-knife gave British Intelligence details of a great many terrorist operations leading to a succession of arrests. ibid.
Littlejohns: MI6 were publicly exposed: their use of petty criminals and the revelation they had condoned a bank robbery caused them acute embarrassment. ibid.
Matrix Churchill was accused of selling illegal munition parts to the Iraqis. ibid.
‘Here’s this Agency and it’s engaged in criminal activities around the world, some of which are quite deadly. Some of which are quite provocative in the sense of laying the groundwork for large-scale military conflict. And it’s happening in a lot of countries.’ Counter-Intelligence: Shining a Light on Black Operations: The Company, Christopher Simpson, author The Science of Coercion, 2013
From the beginning the CIA was steeped in elitism. Its top leadership was made up mostly of Wall Street lawyers, while new recruits were sought through the top Ivy League universities. ibid.
The culture of the secret society would find a parallel in the new intelligence agency; internally, it was known as The Company. ibid.
‘Planned and executed so that any US government responsibility for them is not evident to unauthorized persons and that for those uncovered the US Government can plausibly disclaim any responsibility.’ ibid. NSC 12/02
Daniel Ellsburg, a high-ranking Pentagon official, leaked a treasure-trove of secret documents to The New York Times. The publication of the Pentagon Papers seemed to affirm a widely held view: no matter how hard you try, you cannot keep secrets in Washington. ibid.
‘The National Security State is an instrument of class warfare, organized and designed to permit an elite, local and multinational, to operate without any constraint from democratic processes. ibid. Edward Herman
‘Compartmentalization is inherent to intelligence organisations.’ ibid. Ross Baker, author The Family of Secrets
Not all NGOs live up to their title. ibid.
The CIA has overthrown countless governments around the world … Its agents have engaged in similar plots against America’s closest allies. ibid.