Ian Fleming’s Secret War

by Craig Cabell

If we hadn’t been to the museum in Littlehampton, I might not have given this library book a second glance. I am not an avid fan of James Bond and as for the movies I’m generally impressed more by the music than the plot. However, this book gives an insight into the intelligence work Ian Fleming was part of during World War II before he took up the writing that included the James Bond novels.

Two things this book is not. It is not a biography of Ian Fleming. The author has done his research but concentrates on one period of Ian Fleming’s life particularly concerning his involvement with Naval Intelligence in general and 30 Assault Unit. “It is not the remit of this book to give an in-depth study of 30 AU but to simply explain what they did and how Ian Fleming interacted with them in the field” p 83

The book is also not chiefly concerned with identifying the “real” James Bond. Naturally some aspects of Fleming’s work appear to resonate with the plots and characters of his fiction but Cabell asserts that this is more due to the tendency of authors to drawn on their own experiences rather than a deliberate ploy.

Generally the book is an easy read but on several occasions it would appear that the sub-editor did not do their job properly. I did not spot any spelling mistakes but some sentences lacked a main verb or needed a pronoun to make proper sense. For example, p 104 “In reality 100 scientists who opted to work for Britain who used to work on the V rockets.” That sentence as it stands has two dependent clauses but no main verb – a comma after scientists and also in place of the second ‘who’ is one solution.  There were not too many of these but enough of them to spoil the flow of reading.

If you are interested in the history of military intelligence (and there is an interesting aside about the formation of the CIA) then you may wish to read this book. For myself, I am glad that this was a library book and that I can take it back.

As a library book, three stars, otherwise two; 5/10.

Littlehampton, West Sussex

Arundel Castle – Littlehampton roofs

shop sign in Arundel

Visitor Centre, restaurant, youth hostel, at Littlehampton

Fishbourne Roman Palace gardens

Fishbourne Roman Palace mosaic: yes, it is curved

Blue Peter lifeboat, Littlehampton

We spent a few Spring days in Littlehampton. The weather was not kind but we enjoyed ourselves enough to say that we should come back again – when the sun was shining. Littlehampton is a good place for a family day out and a good base for exploring Sussex. Portsmouth, Chichester to the west, Worthing, Brighton to the east are in easy reach by rail – in fact, so is London for that matter. We visited Arundel and Fishbourne during our brief stay.

Arundel castle struck us as hugely expensive to visit. Although there were different levels of charge, it appeared that you had to pay even to visit the gift shop and the grounds. So we limited ourselves to taking photos of the castle from afar and visiting the town. Despite the biting cold, we did find some interesting shops including one that sold better quality fudge (no glucose syrup and a crumbly texture).

Fishbourne Roman Palace was far better value for money. The guided tour (a free extra) was both entertaining and informative. Among other things we learnt that the famous dolphin mosaic is curved and that because it has stretched it is impossible to put it back to a level state without damaging it. You also got to see the excavations as well as a museum. The pattern and planting of the gardens in the grounds were based on archaeological finds but the weather was against us to do them justice. The service in the café was a bit slow but the food was OK.

Littlehampton is a small town and I do not want you to find it! There are a couple of sandy beaches – good for sandcastles but not good for swimming. The river Arun is one of the fastest flowing in the country (if not the fastest) which is why the RNLI have lifeboats stationed here. Fans of BBC TV’s “Blue Peter” may like to know that Blue Peter 1 is stationed here. Meanwhile the Look & Sea centre offers history, hands on for the children, and spectacular views over the town and surrounding countryside. The restaurant that shares the building was satisfactory too.