AI Summary
5 min readIn the summer of 1956, Kim Philby arrived in Beirut—the "Paris of the Middle East"—a city of ski slopes and sea swims, dinner parties and espionage. He was there as the Observer's Middle East correspondent, but also as a paid MI6 agent, and, eventually, as a Soviet mole who had been waiting years for his handlers to get back in touch. The city was a crossroads of journalists and spies, and Philby, charming and hard-drinking, slipped back into the game. But his past was closing in, and the people closest to him—his father, his wife, his oldest friend—would each play a role in the final act.
A New Life in a Party Town
Beirut in the late 1950s was a vibrant oasis amid Middle Eastern turmoil—the rise of Arab nationalism, the Suez Crisis, instability in Syria and Iraq. Philby, alone after his wife Aileen’s mental health deteriorated and their marriage collapsed, threw himself into the social scene. He lodged initially with his father, St. John Philby, a legendary figure who had helped found Saudi Arabia, converted to Islam, married a teenage Bedouin girl, and kept baboons outside his door. St. John’s household was chaotic; his young wife hid in her room eating sweets while he tried to “Westernize” her. Kim Philby soon moved out, but his father’s death in 1960—after a day of tea, a nap, a pass at an embassy wife, and a heart attack, with last words “God, I’m bored”—sent him in
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What you'll learn
- 1 (00:24) **Philby's New Life in Beirut Begins** - Philby, cleared publicly as not the "third man," arrives in Beirut in 1956 as a journalist for The Observer and a paid MI6 agent.
- 2 (10:43) **A Journalist's Life and a New Love Interest** - David interviews Celia Adams, who knew Philby in Beirut, revealing the social scene and Philby's character.
- 3 (17:44) **Aileen's Death and Philby's Monstrous Reaction** - Philby's wife Aileen is found dead in England; his response reveals a dark side to his personality.
- 4 (22:29) **Philby Reactivates His Soviet Spycraft** - The KGB re-establishes contact with Philby in Beirut, bringing him back into the espionage game.
- 5 (26:00) **Nicholas Elliott Arrives: Friend or Trap?** - Philby's old friend and MI6 protector, Nicholas Elliott, becomes the new station chief in Beirut.
- 6 (29:23) **The Death of St. John Philby** - Philby's father dies, and the event sends Philby into a spiral.
- 7 (30:48) **New Threats: Blake's Arrest and Flora Solomon's Testimony** - Two major events in 1961 and 1962 put renewed pressure on Philby.
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Guests on this episode
Show Notes
Kim Philby is staying one step ahead of his pursuers who suspect the MI6 man is also a KGB agent. Now he’s heading to the Middle East where his past will catch up with him in some unusual ways.
Listen as David and Gordon trace Kim Philby’s journey to Beirut.
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