If Christine Granville didn’t exist Ian Fleming would have had to invent her. Armed with wit, charm, a ravenous libido and a Bond-shaming arsenal of gadgets, the Polish national was the prototypical female spy.
Tonight’s talk from author Clare Muller pays tribute to the World War II Allied agent’s astonishingly under-documented heroics, recounted in her biography, ‘The Spy Who Loved: The Secrets and Lives of Christine Granville’. The book is not new, but its stories are timeless: Granville’s exploits include parachuting behind enemy lines in France, blustering her way through a daring rescue at Gestapo headquarters and convincing an entire garrison of Polish conscripts to surrender. Legend has it the OBE recipient was Churchill’s favourite spy, making his WWII bunker the perfect setting for tonight’s talk. Advance booking is required.