In September 1962, John Vassall, an employee at the Naval Headquarters in London, was exposed as a Soviet spy. After photos were taken in compromising positions during his work at the British Embassy in Moscow, Vassall was blackmailed into providing British defense secrets to his Soviet handlers for seven years.

Although many successful books and films have been made about scandals like Profumo, Jeremy Thorpe, and the Duchess of Argyll, the story of John Vassall, who was responsible for a more serious espionage breach, is ready to repeat itself. It has it all: a honey trap, extensive espionage, journalists imprisoned for refusing to reveal their sources, and the first modern witch hunt campaign, which led to a minister's resignation and nearly brought down Harold Macmillan's government.

Based on recently declassified MI5 files and interviews with people who knew Vassall from the 1950s until his death in 1996, this book sheds new light on a neglected espionage scandal. Despite suffering drug addiction and sexual abuse from the KGB in Moscow, as a gay man, John Vassall showed no mercy from the British press or courts. He was sentenced to eighteen years in prison, served ten, even though he told everything to MI5. After his release, he discovered that many of his former friends and lovers had been persecuted or dismissed from political service in Britain, America, and Australia.

Unlike the Cambridge Five, who sought attention, after his release, Vassall changed his name to avoid the media and lived quietly in London.

Including atmospheric details about Dolphin Square – a hub of political intrigue but also a safe haven for members of the LGBT community – during the 1950s and '60s, this is a explosive story of sexual violence, betrayal, conspiracy, snobbery, homophobia, and hypocrisy that uncovers some of the darkest secrets of the British elite. Pages: 464