Episode 42: BEN MACINTYRE
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Episode 42: BEN MACINTYRE - summary
Over a glass of neat vodka, Ben Macintyre has a chat with Olly about his new book and how he came to know so much about the world of international espionage.
Episode 42: BEN MACINTYRE - timeline
00:04 - this episode is brought to you by the Bumblebee Conservation Trust
02:28 - Ben brings a half-bottle of Smirnoff Vodka
02:48 - Olly’s book of the year in 2018 was The Spy and The Traitor
03:45 - Ben used the National Archive to research his books
05:30 - Oleg Gordievsky is the central character in The Spy and The Traitor
08:29 - The drug used by the Soviets was sodium pentathol
10:55 - Ben mentions four former spies who have become novelists: John Le Carré, Graham Greene, John Buchan and Ian Fleming
15:18 - Ben is referring to the murder attempt on Sergei Skripal
19:45 - the Russian phrase that means ‘useful idiot’ is polezni durak
24:35 - The spy that Ben is writing about next was known as Ursula Burton
26:30 - Ben was listening to Vampire Weekend
26:48 - A film version of Operation Mincemeat, starring Colin Firth, has recently been announced
27:10 - Ben often returns to In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
30:15 - Olly gives Ben a bottle of Warre’s 1985 port. The average price is £67 per bottle.
30:35 - Ben and Olly discuss two spy-related wines: Spookfontein in South Africa and Spy Valley in New Zealand
Episode 42: BEN MACINTYRE - production notes
Recorded on 21 May 2019 at 67 Pall Mall
Hosted by Olly Smith
Produced and edited by Richard Hemming MW
Mastered by David Thomas
Hardware list: 2 x AT-2020 condenser microphones with pop shields, Zoom H6 digital recorder, ATH-M20X headphones
Software list: Audacity 2.2.2, Garageband 10.3.0