The Circus is over

[Nefertiti2]

John Le Carre is dead

RIP

[URL="https://twitter.com/JonnyGeller/status/1338239733638508547?s=20"]https://twitter.com/JonnyGeller/stat...638508547?s=20[/URL]

[Diable Rouge]

John Le Carre has died, at the age of 89.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/20...y-dies-aged-89

[Ray de Galles]

Aw no, he was the absolute master. I suppose 89 is a damn good innings though.

A good excuse to reread his back catalogue though and fill the gaps I haven't got around to reading yet.

[diggedy derek]

The king of style. So many great ones. I thought the last one, Agent Running In The Fields, was very good, with a surprisingly optimistic ending. Perhaps intentional.

[ursus arctos]

Without question one of Britain's greatest novelists since WWII

He will be missed terribly, but has left us all so much to cherish

RIP

[Janik]

I prefer this thread title. So even though DR got there first, I'll reply to this one.

He leaves behind a great body of work. And 89 is a good age to reach. His family can and will mourn, but the rest of us should simply look back over what was achieved and celebrate someone who stands as good in the overall literary canon, and an all-time great in his particular genre.

[Nefertiti2]

what is fascinating is how the older he got the more he moved to the left.

Such an astonishing body of work, equally about the Cold War and office politics and we are never sure which matters most. The people always human. The details so precise. The style so clear.

[diggedy derek]

It's the oldest OTF question of all, isn't it. Who can moderate the moderators? Or should that be who can admin the admins. Nah. that doesn't work.

[ursus arctos]

The "ursus hack" has Nef posting first and DR following within the same minute

I know several former intelligence officers who moved to the left as they aged. History often looks on their actions with scorn and that causes the thoughtful to question their priors.

[Ray de Galles]

Too much to ask for the BBC to put 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' on air over Xmas/NY in tribute? Last time I looked it wasn't even on the iPlayer - though I suppose there might be rights issues.

[Nefertiti2]

This is magnificent

https://twitter.com/adamramsay/status/1338270247195979777?s=21

[slackster]

One of only 2 writers I voluntarily blitzed through all their published novels after discovering them (the other was Chandler). Think it was Tinker, Tailor on the telly that kick started that.

A decent innings for a decent man. RIP.

[Ray de Galles]

Similar for me with le Carre and Graham Greene - though I can't claim to have read quite *all* of either's whole output...yet.

[sw2borshch]

I have done something similar over the last decade or so, moving from never having bothered with spy stuff until reading Amor and others waxing lyrical about Eric Ambler and then having a real espionage etc. jag.

Might watch our Tinker, Tailor DVDs again over Christmas.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

Too much to ask for the BBC to put 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' on air over Xmas/NY in tribute? Last time I looked it wasn't even on the iPlayer - though I suppose there might be rights issues.

You can find it on YouTube, Ray - I watched it last week. I found it under 'TTSS re-synched sound'. I'll see if I can find the link.

[colchestersid]

He lived next door to my sister and her family for a few years. Very pleased to confirm that "Uncle" David was a thoroughly kind, decent and warm hearted man and a lovely neighbour

[Ray de Galles]

You can find it on YouTube, Ray - I watched it last week. I found it under 'TTSS re-synched sound'. I'll see if I can find the link.

Thanks, I actually bought it on iTunes years ago as I was going on a series of long haul flights.

I'd just like to watch it on proper TV, and think it deserves the wider airing.

[slackster]

I’m guessing TTSS is on the Britbox flop, as one of the Beebs shiny baubles to hook subscribers.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

Here's a link to the complete BBC Smiley radio plays - genuinely excellent.

[Various Artist]

The BBC adaptation of Tinker, Tailor is indeed brilliant, though the theatrical adaptation holds its own in comparison.

Do you mean the film RC, or is there actually a stage play version? Because I can well imagine the latter, though I suspect you're referring to the Oldman film.

Apropos of your MacLean reference there, only last night I read a wonderful bit of trivia related to him:

In the early 1970s, the show [Desert Island Discs] tried to interview Alistair MacLean but ended up accidentally booking the European director of tourism for Ontario, Canada (obviously totally unknown to anyone in the United Kingdom), who happened to have the same name.
With Roy Plomley too much of a gentleman to offend the wrongly booked guest, the recording went ahead even after the mix-up was realised, but the episode was never broadcast.

Also not quite falling within the realms of respectful tribute to Mr Cornwell, but something else I thought I'd share, was that when I told my dad last night that "John le Carre's died" he said "Oh, that's sad" – then a few moments later added "Hang on... John Curry's been dead for years."

Seriously, though, RIP to le Carre, clearly a very decent man as well as a very fine writer.

[Nefertiti2]

Some great essays

His father

https://twitter.com/MicheleBerdy/status/1338423989350363137?s=20


Filming with Richard Burton

[Satchmo Distel]

He used to do signing sessions in York at a bookshop where my friend worked (Blackwells).

[Various Artist]

I'm referring to the Oldman film, yeah. I didn't realise there was a stage play version, I'll have to check that out!

No, alas, as far as I know there isn't one – I meant I was just wondering from your previous comment whether there was one I was unaware of!

It ought to make a terrific stage play, though, but to the best of my knowledge that's something that doesn't exist as yet.

[Nefertiti2]

Anthony Barnett reminds us about le Carres campaigning

https://twitter.com/AnthonyBarnett/status/1338540196774748164?s=20

It's the discovery, in his sixth decade, that half a century after the death of Empire, the dismally unmanaged country he'd done a little of this and that for is being marched off to quell the natives on the strength of a bunch of lies, in order to please a renegade hyper-power that thinks it can treat the rest of the world as its allotment...

We marched with him and his wife Jane in London against the visit of President George W Bush in November 2003. With his bright eyes David picked out a demonstrator with large polished boots as a policeman.

In 2006, enraged by the Israeli attack on Lebanon and with his views no longer so welcome in the mainstream press, he published a surgical condemnation in openDemocracy and in support of Saqi Books.

When we needed to launch a funding campaign he gave us its lead endorsement:

[Amor de Cosmos]

“The privately educated Englishman is the greatest dissembler on earth.... “Nobody will charm you so glibly, disguise his feelings from you better, cover his tracks more skillfully or find it harder to confess to you that he’s been a damn fool.”

They are: “[M]en who see the threat to their class as synonymous with the threat to England and never wandered far enough to know the difference.”

In my lifetime probably no one understood the English ruling class better than Le Carre. His insights are more true today — and even more pertinent — than they were when written. He'll be be greatly missed.

Christ this is the shittiest year of my lifetime.