[…] Neither Roy Hattersley, nor Anthony Howard, who reviewed this in the Daily Telegraph, noticed (or thought worth mentioning) a major feature of Falkender’s behaviour: she was doing drugs, speed (purple hearts, named by Donoughue), sleepers and tranquillisers. Donoughue shows that Wilson’s doctor, Joseph Stone, certainly gave her some of them. These days we know […]
John Diamond Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, 2008, h/b. No price is stated but it’s around $30 on-line. In The Guardian on 4 March 2009 William Dalrymple wrote: ‘Eight years of neocon foreign policies have been a spectacular disaster for American interests in the Islamic world, leading to the advance of Hamas and Hezbollah, the … Read more
[…] in America. It covers everything from the apparently trivial – campaigns to get kids still in primary school to snitch on their parents if they are using drugs – through to Cointelpro and all its successor projects. Redden discusses, among many other things: a law enforcement system dependent upon criminals licensed to operate by […]
[…] campaigners however, the book has less to offer. In many of the topics, such as those covering the Calvi murder, the plots against Harold Wilson, the CIA drugs connection etc, anyone who has been following the topics will feel that some of the more obvious and important texts have not been referred to. The […]
[…] prostitution: William McGrath, Van Straubenzee, Clifford Smyth Wilson’s affair with Marcia Williams (Secretary) in Moscow Finance: Maudling, Thorpe, Wilson, Short etc. Fianna Fail: Charles Haughey – IRA/ drugs link. Bill Fuller ‘Old (illegible) Hotel’ Norman Frank Butler/Sammy Smyth UDA Jackie Watson: Billy Hull LAW funds Paisley: transfer of funds to USA, Australia and S.Africa […]
[…] John Mulholland, was hired to ‘teach intelligence operatives how to use the tools of the magician’s trade – sleight of hand and misdirection – to covertly administer drugs, chemicals and biological agents to unsuspecting victims’ as part of Project MKULTRA.(19) Privates on the payroll The increasing use of PMSCs (private military or security companies) […]
A spook, moi? One of the formative experiences of my youth – and we’re talking early 1960s here, beatnik days, when wearing a narrow leather tie was pretty hip – was going to the Mound in Edinburgh on Sunday nights. The Mound is like Hyde Park Corner in London, a place where local by-laws allow … Read more
Patriots not sneaks After a year of New Labour I feel beholden to write something on this subject, but what is there worth saying that isn’t blindingly and depressingly obvious and predictable? Jack Straw, who took over as Home Secretary, and thus formally as the boss of MI5, is determined to sedate any sleeping dogs … Read more
Terrorism: how the West can win editor Benjamin Netanyahu (Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London 1986) This is a collection of papers read at the 1984 Jonathan Institute conference on terrorism held in Israel, and because these were originally papers there is no documentation: what we have is 230 pages of assertions. The contributors range from current … Read more
Frost/Nixon Or, a load of old dick When Frost/Nixon first appeared at the Donmar Warehouse theatre in London back in 2006 I wondered why on earth anyone would want to stage, to recreate, what was, essentially, a non-event. Why indeed? One can imagine mere actors relishing the opportunity to ‘interpret’ Frost and Nixon but who … Read more
