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| MI6 headquarters |
“Bond. James Bond.” Though they may not refer to their agents as “00” anything, MI6, more officially known as the Secret Intelligence Service, is still a crack intelligence agency. MI6 actually stands for “Military Intelligence, Section 6” and is comparable to the C.I.A. in America. It’s sister organization, MI5 is the security service responsible for protection from domestic threats, much like the F.B.I. or Department of Homeland Security. Of course, any intelligence agency builds up its share of secrets and interesting facts over many years of service, and MI6 is no different.
MI6 was founded just before world war two, when the British government was worried about the rise of the German empire, and feared their spies. It was public opinion at the time that all German’s living in England were spies. They built their own network of spies to combat this problem, known as Military Intelligence Six. Originally there were two sections of what was known as the Secret Service Bureau, the army section, and the naval section. The army section concentrated on intelligence inside the country, and the naval section was concerned with foreign espionage.
Wrong Letter
Though the head of MI6 in the James Bond films always uses the letter “M”, in the real world, the head of the service is actually referred to as “C”. This originated with the first leader of the organization, Sir Mansfield Cumming, who signed everything “C”. All subsequent heads of MI6 are also referred to as this, regardless of what his or her real name is. “C” always writes and signs every document in green ink.Different Branches
At one point, there were 19 different Military Intelligence branches. MI1 handled the management of information, MI11 was responsible for codebreaking, MI2 for Russian and Scandinavian Intelligence, MI4 for aerial reconnaissance, and so on. Eventually, many of these branches were absorbed into MI5 or MI6.Headquarters
MI6 Headquarters is in Vauxhall Cross, first seen as the home of MI6 for the Bond films in “The World Is Not Enough”. It was completed in 1994 and the price tag was rumoured at £130 million. Much of the building is underground to protect more sensitive materials and the layout is protected by the Official Secrets Act.Out of the Shadows, Into the Light
MI6 was born as the Secret Service Bureau in 1909 and its existence was not fully disclosed until 1994.Undisclosed Age
Smiley’s People
John le Carre, the author responsible for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” and “Smiley’s People” was himself a MI6 agent. “TTSS” is based on the infamous Cambridge Five: Guy Burgess, Donald Maclean, Anthony Blunt, John Cairncross, and Kim Philby, who were recruited as university students by the Soviets and became moles for the KGB. Le Carre changed his name from David John Moore Cornwell as agents aren’t allowed to publish under their own names. In addition to la Carre, author Graham Greene was also an MI6 agents. Ian Fleming was not with MI6 but with Naval Intelligence during the war which inspired his creation of James Bond.Make Cupcakes, Not Bombs
MI6 agents hacked an Al-Qaeda online magazine and replaced instructions for bomb-making with cupcake recipes.The Digital Age
Much like the CIA finally signing up with Twitter, MI6 has gone online with its own webpage. There visitors can learn about the history of the agency, search for jobs, and take a virtual tour of the organization.Cool Gadgets
Super spy gadgets were a very real thing, though maybe not to the extent of having magnetic watches and grenade pens. Real spies used technology like cameras in matchboxes and brushes with secret compartments.Notable Spies just like the legendary james bond.
Writer Roald Dahl was a spy for MI6. Dahl’s job was to gain as much information from US women as possible, mainly by sleeping with them. James Bond was based on a real person named Biffy Dunderdale. His full name is Commander Wilfred Dunderdale, he was nicknamed Biffy because he was a brilliant navy boxer. He was head of the secret service station in Paris, and “Had a penchant for pretty women, and fast cars”. He was also friends with Ian Fleming, the man who wrote James Bond. John Le Carre, who wrote Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy was an MI6 agent who wrote under a pseudonym. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy was also based on the Cambridge Five, a group of double agents.
First World War
As soon as World War One started MI6 were able to arrest 21 German spies living in the UK. MI6 had trouble gaining information during the first world war as it couldn’t establish a spy network in Germany but only in the countries surrounding it. However they did still gain some valuable information. After 1917 MI6 became increasingly worried about the growth of Communism, and underestimated the threat of Nazism. The British had set up anti-bolshevik groups in Russia to execute sabotage and subversion. They even tried to assassinate Lenin at one point, but the plan failed.
MI6 Bribed Spain With $200 Million
Britain bribed Spain with $200 million in order to keep them neutral. Britain began to fear that Spain would join forces with Hitler and the Nazi’. They spent £14 million bribing Spanish officials in order to convince them to stay neutral, which is about $200 million in today’s money.
World War Two
The Cambridge Five
The Cambridge Five were a group of students recruited by the SIS at Cambridge. They betrayed their countries, acted as double agents for the Soviets, and became the most notorious spies in British history. Only four of their identities have been revealed, one member’s identity still remains elusive. One of the members, Philby, was actually appointed head of the Anti-Soviet division, even though he was a double agent. He had a good reputation, and likely would have climbed high up the ranks in MI6, if not for one disastrous incident. Philby’s reputation was damaged when it became clear he had warned two double agents, who were also members of the Cambridge Five. Philby escaped and defected to the SovietUnion.
MI6 In The Americas
A secret organisation known as the British Security Co-ordination was set up in the Americas in May 1940. It was headed by William Stephenson and it’s objective was to investigate enemy activities, prevent sabotage, and make the public think favourably of the British. They also set up Camp X in Canada. Camp X trained clandestine officers, and managed to establish a telecommunications relay station, named Hydra.
The Impossible Death
In 2010 a British spy was found dead, stark naked, inside of a duffel bag which had been locked from the outside. The Metropolitan police claimed that he accidentally locked himself in the bag, but who would believe that. The bag was padlocked from the outside, and the key as underneath his body. The police spent three years investigating this before concluding that he did it to himself by accident. The coroner believes that a third party was involved partly because the victim’s fingerprints were not found on the padlock. It seems obvious that he couldn’t possibly have done all this himself so why the police give such a strange explanation is a mystery.
Ronnie Biggs
Ronnie Biggs was a part of the Great Train Robbery in 1963, and arrested by the police. Two years later he escaped from prison. He spent 36 years living as a fugitive, during that time he became a punk rock icon, a news anchor, was kidnapped and released by MI6, and then finally turned himself in at the age of 69. Biggs spent most of his time as a fugitive living in Australia and Brazil. He became one of the most famous fugitives in the world while he was on the run. He was born during World War Two, and evacuated to the countryside. Eventually he joined the Royal Air Force but was dishonourably discharged.
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