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Kim Philby: A Story of Friendship and Betrayal (Dialogue Espionage Classics) Paperback – December 15, 2015

by Tim Milne (Author), Phillip Knightley (Foreword)
3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 163 ratings
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"Elegant and rich in detail, [Kim Philby] provides intriguing glimpses of the man who would become the twentieth century's most notorious British spy and traitor."—Mail on Sunday

Kim Philby is recognized as the Cold War's most infamous traitor, a Soviet spy at the heart of British intelligence. Tim Milne was Philby's closest and oldest friend. His treachery was a huge blow to Milne and, after he retired, Milne wrote this highly revealing description of Philby's time in the secret service.

Tim Milne retired from MI6 in October 1968 and never spoke publicly of his friendship with Kim Philby. He died in 2010.

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    304 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Dialogue
  4. Publication date
    December 15, 2015
  5. Dimensions
    5 x 1 x 7.75 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1849548277
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1849548274
  8. See all details
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About the Author

Tim Milne: Tim Milne was the nephew of Winnie the Pooh writer AA Milne, retired from SIS in October 1968 and never spoke publicly of his friendship with Kim Philby. He later wrote a full and frank account of his association. He died in 2010.

Phillip Knightley: Phillip Knightley is a journalist, critic, and non-fiction author, visiting Professor of Journalism at the University of Lincoln, England, and media commentator on the intelligence services and propaganda. His books include the seminal The First Casualty and Philby, KGB Master Spy.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Dialogue; Reprint edition (December 15, 2015)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1849548277
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1849548274
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 1 x 7.75 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 163 ratings

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Tim Milne

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Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
3.9 out of 5
163 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Richard Frost
5.0 out of 5 stars A Fascinating account
Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2014
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This is the only first-hand account I have ever read of Philby by a close friend, professional colleague and career intelligence officer and is excellently written. The account of Philby's time at Westminster and their travels together through central Europe during university holidays to me is absolutely fascinating as are the lengthy chapters on work and life in Section V of the SIS. While Milne does not excuse Philby's actions, he comes closer to providing reasons than anything else I've seen in print. Clearly, Philby was a person who inspired great loyalty and even admiration among his friends and colleagues in the British service, the writer Graham Greene being just one of these. For anyone interested in understanding Philby this is a great read as it's a true account; the other book I read recently is Ben Macintyre's book about Kim Philby's supposedly close friendship with Nicholas Elliott which I found full of factual errors and distortions. Elliott knew Philby for just over 20 years since they first met, according to Elliott's own autobiography, when the latter joined the SIS in late 1941 and indeed the first time they actually worked together was in Beirut when Elliott was meant to be running Philby as an Agent. Milne on the other hand knew Philby for nearly forty years and his book is the real thing
18 people found this helpful
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Rosemary M. Read
4.0 out of 5 stars Kim Philby - His Choice
Reviewed in the United States on July 5, 2014
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Tim Milne knew Kim Philby better than most people, he remained a friend throughout their careers in the British Security Service. He takes us into the world of documenting, evaluating, assessing scraps of information gleaned by clandestine means from enemy sources. At this time this was the domain of intelligent "top people". This to outsiders was quaintly British, its members came from the best Public (USA private) schools, good colleges and well known families. This was the best "vetting" system. From childhood all were known and could be entrusted with top secrets. These people were tasked with discovering the plans and thoughts of the enemy by every means possible and to outwit and defeat them. Their work was an outstanding success but Britain has a long history of spying, going back hundreds of years. Kim Philby was accepted by the Security Service because he belonged, he was part of the club, he had all the credentials. Good family,well known Public School and Cambridge University. His other resume more ominous. He was also employed by Soviet Intelligence. . He was popular, to his friends constant and had a remarkable aptitude for his work for British Intelligence while maintaining his contacts with his other masters. In spite of the many books written about Philby the mystery remains. What attracted him to the Communist cause? He was at ease among his Establishment friends among whom were writers, journalists, politicians and he had an interesting social life. He did not appear to have an interest in what may be considered the social injustices of the period. He chose a double life of immense stress culminating in exile. Tim Milne charts their lives and when the treachery is finally unveiled there appears more sorrow than anger at the denouement.
This book is interesting as it illustrates the lesser known human side of Kim Philby The early days of trips to Europe. His domestic life and the life-long friendship with the author.
9 people found this helpful
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ernest v. montford
3.0 out of 5 stars Kim Philby from a friend's view
Reviewed in the United States on April 30, 2014
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This book is well written but doesn't really offer much in additional information on Britain's most infamous spy. If you know nothing of H. A. R. Philby it will mean little to you, if you do it offers modest entertainment. The author was the famous A. A. Milne's nephew and a career foreign service official. He knew Philby from school days at Westminster in London but they went to different universities.

The author strives for fairness while acknowledging Philby was a long time friend. It seems Milne never suspected the spy of working for the Russians but he had a large amount of company in that. One thing did puzzle me was MI6s forbidding the publication of the book in 1970. It was finally published posthumously by Milne's daughter and I cant see anything that would have harmed Great Britain's interests. I suspect the Secrets Act covers a lot of sins in that fine country.
14 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent story and an easy read
Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2015
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Excellent story and an easy read. I had no idea who Kim Philby was but after reading this book I read several additional books and Milne ' s was the most detailed and intriguing.
3 people found this helpful
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A. E. Hutchison
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United States on April 25, 2015
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A great read, even for someone like me who as only a little knowledge of espionage.
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RICHARD J LOCK
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2018
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Intriguing account of history in my lifetime
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Robert H. Ehlert
2.0 out of 5 stars Two Stars
Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2017
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it's ok but not a page turner.
2 people found this helpful
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James Strong
3.0 out of 5 stars Kim never dies
Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2014
Read this alongside Philby's own and it appears they did little of significance but managed to avoid cannon fire Or military action during WW II.
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Top reviews from other countries

john killick
5.0 out of 5 stars GOOD VALUE
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 4, 2023
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GOOD READ
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars By a friend of Philby who spends much of the book disclaiming ever seeing Philby
Reviewed in Australia on December 29, 2022
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A very patchy book that probably suggests more questions than it answers. Like so many who were involved with Philby, Milne spends most of the time claiming he only ever met the spy occasionally despite being friends. Also much of the logic used is defensive and very shaky if thought about more than fleetingly. Well written and worth a read if only for what it doesn’t tell us.
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moulak1
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on June 5, 2016
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On time and as advertised.
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John Hopper
4.0 out of 5 stars interesting perspective of the life of the master spy
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 27, 2019
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This is an unusual story of the life of the master spy, being written by his childhood friend Tim Milne in the 1970s, though not published until after Milne's death in 2010. Tim Milne was a contemporary of Philby at Westminster school in the 1920s, their fathers also having been at school together. Though Milne was at Oxford rather than Cambridge, they travelled extensively in Europe together during the summer holidays on three occasions in the early 1930s, which is when it emerged much later was when Philby was first recruited as a Soviet agent (they were in Germany at the time of the last pre-Nazi election, where Hitler's party did very well, and a couple of months after Hitler came to power but before Germany had become fully totalitarian). They worked together closely in the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) and their families became fairly close, living together for periods, during and after the war. After Philby was appointed to the UK embassy in Washington in 1949, they became less close. This was Philby's last job in SIS before he was sacked in 1951 after being suspected of involvement in the defection of Burgess and Maclean to the USSR. There was no concrete proof, though, and Milne gave his friend the benefit of any doubt; Philby was cleared by an investigation in 1955 announced in the House of Commons by no less than then Foreign Secretary Harold Macmillan. Milne saw him little afterwards, as Philby became Observer correspondent in Beirut, from which he defected to the USSR in 1963 to escape definitive exposure; as Milne says, "In the world civil war we were now on opposite sides for ever."

Being himself involved in the world of secret intelligence, Milne is able to refute some of the more colourful theories espoused by other writers, and demonstrate that this secret world is by no means the glamorous and colourful life depicted in spy fiction, but much simpler, more mundane and more sordid in some ways. He points out that at many times there were rationale reasons for some actions by Philby that in hindsight were seen as signs of his spying; Philby was clever and cautious, which was why he was successful for so long, and he could not have carried out some of the daring exploits spies are sometimes credited with, without risking exposure, and thus bringing an end to his usefulness to the Soviets. Milne does not in any way condone Philby's actions, but still values their friendship. His final conclusion is: "I do not regret knowing him. He enriched my world for many years and I owed a lot to him. Certainly my association with him caused many difficulties for me but I do not feel bitterness towards him, only sadness."
5 people found this helpful
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Sanda Kanepa
1.0 out of 5 stars Excuse
Reviewed in Canada on June 26, 2015
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Sounds like an excuse of Milne and the Secret Service
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