tinker tailor soldier spy a george smiley novel

In World War II, Haydon builds a superb record in Nazi-occupied Europe and the Middle East, such that he elicits comparisons with Lawrence of Arabia. He is identified for recruitment in the Circus ( John le Carré's lightly fictionalised version of MI6) by his tutor and acts in turn as a talent-spotter among his classmates, most notably Jim Prideaux, who also becomes his lover. A polymath of sorts with a brilliant and charming personality, he excels as a student, takes up remote languages with ease, and proves a gifted painter while at Oxford. He comes from an eminent family with connections throughout British high society his father is a high court judge, and two of his several sisters married into the aristocracy. Haydon was born around 1917 no specific year is given but he is known to have been an undergraduate at Oxford University in 1937. The character is partly modelled after the real-life double agent Kim Philby, part of the notorious Cambridge Five spy ring in Britain, who defected to the USSR in 1963. The novel follows aging spymaster George Smiley's endeavours to uncover the mole. He is a senior officer in the British Secret Intelligence Service who serves as a Soviet mole. Haydon.īill Haydon is a fictional character created by John le Carré who features in le Carré's 1974 novel Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. For the Australian politician, see Bill Hayden.

Tinker tailor soldier spy a george smiley novel