Henry Hemming: M, MI5's Greatest Spymaster

The story of M: Maxwell Knight, MI5's greatest spymaster

Two remarkable female spies and the man who trained them. Henry Hemming tells the story of Maxwell Knight, an animal-loving drop-out who became MI5’s greatest spymaster. Find out whether you could be a spy and get a taste of what it was like to work for M.

Maxwell Knight was a paradox. A jazz obsessive and a nature enthusiast, he is also seen today as one of MI5's greatest spymasters, a man who did more than any other to break up British fascism during the Second World War. He was known to his agents and colleagues simply as M, and was rumoured to be part of the inspiration for the character M in the James Bond series. Knight became a legendary spymaster despite an almost total lack of qualifications. What set him apart from his peers was a mercurial ability to transform almost anyone into a fearless secret agent.

Drawing on declassified documents, private family archives and interviews with retired MI5 officers as well as the families of MI5 agents, Henry Hemming reveals not just the shadowy world of espionage but a brilliant, enigmatic man at its centre, who was the first in MI5 to grasp the potential of training female agents. Henry Hemming tells the gripping story of M, as well as providing a taste of what it was like to work for this great spymaster.

Henry Hemming is the author of five previous works of non-fiction, including most recently Churchill's Iceman, published in the US as The Ingenious Mr. Pyke, where it became a New York Times bestseller. Earlier works include Misadventure in the Middle East and In Search of the English Eccentric. He has written for the Economist, The Sunday Times, FT Magazine and the Washington Post, among many others. He lives in London with his wife and two children.

Enjoy food and drink purchased from the Knowledge Centre Bar from 18.00 and after the event until the Bar closes at 22.00.