The Big Breach - Index of
The Big Breach - Index of
The Big Breach - Index of
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<strong>The</strong> <strong>Big</strong> <strong>Breach</strong>; From Top Secret to Maximum SecurityCompliments <strong>of</strong> http://www.192.comhe joined the service directly from Oxford, had been posted to Uruguayshortly after the outbreak <strong>of</strong> the Falklands war, then went to New Yorkto work in the British mission to the United Nations.Looking around the table, I realised the new recruits were all fromsimilar backgrounds. All were white, male, conventional and middleclass. All <strong>of</strong> us were university graduates, mostly from Oxford orCambridge. It was pretty much the background <strong>of</strong> all MI6 <strong>of</strong>ficers. <strong>The</strong>service's recruitment figures refute its claims to be an equalopportunity employer: only about 10 per cent <strong>of</strong> the <strong>of</strong>ficers werefemale, there were no black <strong>of</strong>ficers whatsoever, only one <strong>of</strong> mixedAsian parentage, and there were no disabled <strong>of</strong>ficers, even though therewere plenty <strong>of</strong> suitable opportunities. <strong>The</strong>se issues gave me no concernat the time, though. I was deeply enthusiastic about my new career andcould hardly wait to get started on the training.MONDAY, 9 DECEMBER 1991PORTSMOUTH, ENGLAND4. INDOCTRINATION<strong>The</strong> nine <strong>of</strong> us, crammed into the Bedford minibus, were silent and tenseas we drove through the darkness and driving rain towards the centre <strong>of</strong>Portsmouth. It was 8.30 p.m. and the streets were almost empty. Only afew stragglers, huddled under umbrellas, were scurrying to the pubs.Ball drove, with Long silently alongside. One by one, they dropped us<strong>of</strong>f in dark side streets or deserted parking lots to merge into thenight. Castle went first, striding confidently towards his target,dressed in his suit with a Barbour jacket to protect himself againstthe elements. Spencer followed, sheepishly scuttling into the darknessunder a Burberry umbrella. My turn was next and Markham wished me luckas I slipped out <strong>of</strong> the back door <strong>of</strong> the minibus and orientated myselftowards my target.<strong>The</strong> IONEC was designed to train a recruit to a level <strong>of</strong> pr<strong>of</strong>iciency tostep into a junior desk job in MI6. Approximately half <strong>of</strong> the coursewas spent in the classroom, learning the administration <strong>of</strong> the service,the theory <strong>of</strong> how to cultivate, recruit, handle and debrief agents,listening to case histories and receiving presentations from thedifferent sections <strong>of</strong> the service. <strong>The</strong> remainder was spent inexercises, and we were on PERFECT STRANGER, the first <strong>of</strong> manyincreasingly complicated tests that were to form the backbone <strong>of</strong> thecourse.Our brief was simple but a little nerve-racking for novice spies. Wewere each assigned a pub in downtown Portsmouth in which we had toapproach a member <strong>of</strong> the public and, using whatever cunning ruse wecould invent, extract their name, address, date <strong>of</strong> birth, occupationand passport number. We were given an alias, but had to use ourinitiative to invent the rest <strong>of</strong> our fictional personality.Ball explained that the purpose <strong>of</strong> the exercise was three-fold. First,it was a gentle introduction to using and maintaining an alias identityin a live situation, an essential skill for an intelligence <strong>of</strong>ficer.Second, it would test our initiative and cunning in devising a crediblepage- 32 - To purchase the original limited edition hardback version <strong>of</strong> this bookplease call 08000 192 192 or go to http://www.192.com