Listen free for 30 days
Listen with offer
-
Stalin's Englishman
- The Lives of Guy Burgess
- Narrated by: Simon Shepherd
- Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
99p for the first 3 months
Stalin's Englishman
Buy Now for £12.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
Summary
Guy Burgess is the most important, complex and fascinating of 'The Cambridge Spies' - the group of British men recruited to pass intelligence to the Soviets during World War Two and the Cold War.
Burgess' story takes us from his student days in 1930s Cambridge, where he was first approached by Soviet scouts, through his daring infiltration of the BBC and the British government, to his final escape to Russia and lonely, tragic-comic exile there.
In this definitive biography, Andrew Lownie uncovers the true depths of Burgess' penetration and betrayal of the British Intelligence Service. His close, personal relationships with several high-profile men and women are examined - including his friendship with Winston Churchill and his family.
Through interviews with over 100 people who knew Burgess personally, many of whom have never spoken about him before, and the discovery of hitherto secret files on the Cambridge Spies, Andrew Lownie reveals a completely new and intriguing picture of Guy Burgess.
More from the same
Author
What listeners say about Stalin's Englishman
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story3 out of 5 stars
- Alexander A.
- 23-09-22
Interesting but repetitive
Many interesting parts but found the narrative repeated itself, so some parts were a bit boring.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Trebor
- 06-11-15
Fascinating
Always been interested in the Cambridge spy ring so I really enjoyed this book.
The reader was excellent.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mr. R. D. Cox
- 06-12-16
Eton Blinders
this book shows house silly some people can be. Was Burgess the Spy because of his conviction or because his Love of daring? book explores this but leaves the question suitably open
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mary Carnegie
- 20-02-20
Defector with old Etonian tie
It is difficult to believe that the outrageous Guy Burgess could maintain a career with access to sensitive intelligence for so long, spying for USSR, in spite of his erratic behaviour. He was a promiscuous gay man when that could lead to imprisonment as well as disapproval, a notorious drinker, indiscrete, open about his Communist beliefs. BUT he was also “Establishment”! Eton, Cambridge, Reform Club, “good family” knew everyone of influence, wealth or celebrity. And always wore his old school tie, even after his defection to USSR. At one point he seemed to be about to marry Churchill’s niece. An extraordinary life, too fantastic for fiction.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Allan Robb-McLeod
- 21-12-15
Beilliant
Having just finished Ben MacIntyre's brilliant book on Kim Philby "A Spy among Friends" I found myself interested in that other Cambridge Spy, Guy Burgess, and was pleased to see this recommended by Audible. Like MacIntyre's book, this book does a brilliant job of showing more of the infamous man. Burgess, of all the spies, has had the worst reputation but Lownie describes a compellingly flawed and ideologically naive man. A particular strength of this book is that it does not, as so many do, treat Burgess's life after his defection as an epilogue but rather show the impact that his decision to defect had on Burgess and those close to him. A really great book for all spy aficionados and cold warriors!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
7 people found this helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Nick Drew
- 04-10-16
An interesting if repetitive account
A fascinating re-assessment of Guy Burgess, putting him at the centre of the Cambridge spies
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Hazel M
- 07-06-16
well researched and interesting
So informative. This book has stimulated my interest in espionage history at that time. The author gives a well researched and balanced account.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mr R Lamberth
- 03-02-23
Great story, well-read!
This is an amazing, fact-filled tale that anyone interested in this period of history will enjoy.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance3 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jonathan
- 18-09-16
Well researched, let down by narrator
A very interesting and full account of Guy Burgess and his circle.
It's a shame that the narrator's near monotone didn't emphasise in places especially in certain crucial areas of the story, which I found myself having to rewind to check, otherwise a good book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- S. Pitman
- 11-02-21
Great fun
Thrilling read, engagingly performed by the great Sir Simon Shepherd.
Delves beneath the caricature of Burgess seen in other books and unearth’s a complex, hilarious and often sad figure. Excellent final summary on the reasons behind his betrayal tops the whole thing of nicely
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!