Sex, spies and scandal : the John Vassall affair (336)

Cold War Conversations

Alex Grant’s new book Sex, Spies and Scandal The John Vassall Affair has everything: a honey trap, industrial-scale espionage, journalists jailed for not revealing their sources and the first modern tabloid witch-hunt, which resulted in a ministerial resignation and almost brought down Harold Macmillan’s government.

With access to newly released MI5 files and interviews with people who knew Vassall from the 1950s until he died in 1996, this book sheds new light on a neglected spy scandal. Despite having been drugged and sexually assaulted by the KGB in Moscow, as a gay man John Vassall was shown no mercy by the British press or the courts.

Sentenced to eighteen years in jail, he served ten years, despite telling MI5 everything. Once released, he found that many of his old friends and lovers had been persecuted or dismissed from the civil service in Britain, America and Australia.

Unlike the Cambridge Five, who courted attention, after leaving prison Vassall changed his name to avoid the media and lived quietly in London.

Buy the book and support the podcast here https://uk.bookshop.org/a/1549/9781785907883

Episode extras here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode336/

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00:00 Introduction to Cold War Conversations and the John Vassal Affair

00:36 Unveiling the John Vassal Spy Scandal

05:49 The Life and Times of John Vassal

16:15 Vassal's Recruitment by Soviet Intelligence

37:08 Vassal's Espionage Activities in London

41:28 The Cold War Thaw and Social Dynamics in Moscow

42:24 Vassal's Entrapment and the Lax Security

43:56 The Discovery of a Spy Within the Admiralty

46:55 The Fallout of Vassal's Capture and Its Impact

48:33 The Dramatic Arrest of John Vassal

49:35 Vassal's Immediate Confession and Relief

53:05 The Aftermath: Legal Proceedings and Public Reaction

01:05:41 Vassal's Life Post-Imprisonment and Legacy

01:09:48 Revisiting the Impact of Vassal's Espionage

01:11:57 Uncovering New Insights from the National Archives

01:16:55 Reflecting on Vassal's Life and the Broader Historical Context

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