William Boyd on spy fiction and the British psyche episode artwork

EPISODE · May 9, 2026 · 36 MIN

William Boyd on spy fiction and the British psyche

from The New Society | culture from the New Statesman

What makes someone a good spy? And does the fiction writer, in many senses a professional liar, share the traits of a double agent?Novelist and screenwriter William Boyd first explored the theme of espionage in his 2002 novel Any Human Heart and went on to pen a James Bond continuation novel called Solo.His latest trilogy (Gabriel's Moon, The Predicament and Cold Sunset) explores what happens when a travel writer becomes entangled in Cold War Espionage. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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William Boyd on spy fiction and the British psyche

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What makes someone a good spy? And does the fiction writer, in many senses a professional liar, share the traits of a double agent?Novelist and screenwriter William Boyd first explored the theme of espionage in his 2002 novel Any Human Heart and...

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