Agent Zigzag cover art

Agent Zigzag

The True Wartime Story of Eddie Chapman: Lover, Traitor, Hero, Spy

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Agent Zigzag

By: Ben Macintyre
Narrated by: Ben Macintyre
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About this listen

Bloomsbury presents Agent Zigzag written and read by Ben Macintyre.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA BIOGRAPHY AWARD

'Engrossing as any thriller' Daily Telegraph
'Superb. Meticulously researched, splendidly told, immensely entertaining' John le Carré
'This is the most amazing book, full of fascinating and hair-raising true life adventures . . . It would be impossible to recommend it too highly' Mail on Sunday
_______
One December night in 1942, a Nazi parachutist landed in a Cambridgeshire field. His mission: to sabotage the British war effort.

His name was Eddie Chapman, but he would shortly become MI5's Agent Zigzag. Dashing and suave, courageous and unpredictable, Chapman was by turns a traitor, a hero, a villain and a man of conscience. But, as his spymasters and many lovers often wondered, who was the real Eddie Chapman?

Ben Macintyre weaves together diaries, letters, memories and top-secret MI5 files to create an exhilarating account of Britain's most sensational double agent.

©2009 Ben Macintyre (P)2024 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc Espionage Freedom & Security Historical Military Military & War Politics & Government True Crime World War II War Exciting Imperialism

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All stars
Most relevant
What an incredible story and told so well I feel as though I know Eddie Chapman personally , Can’t rate Ben Macintyre highly enough .

Outstanding

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Brilliantly narrated by the author, who manages to express the wonder and incredulity of what he is reading as if it were for the first time.

The story is legendary and there are so many ways I wish it had different resolutions for some of the characters.

But that’s the nature of real life. Sometimes the most unjust things happen completely randomly. Life can hang by and be broken like the thinnest thread and at other times survival continues in the most beyond extreme circumstances.

An enduring factor running in these war time scenarios is that regardless of which colour uniform was worn, the characters are so remarkably similar as ‘people’.

It is so sad that we have to create the extreme conditions in war to make heroes of ourselves.

Unbelievable believability!

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The more I listened to Ben‘s writings the more I am enthralled by his story telling. This has to be one of the all time espionage of the second world war. Was up there with Agent Sonya, in fact I’d say this is better a total unlikely hero from that time.

What a tail of espionage and counter espionage

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I was expecting a story and was initially disappointed that it was more of a biography. However from almost the beginning. I was hooked and I couldn’t stop listening. Firstly, it was brilliantly read obviously by the author which made a big difference. Knowing that this was a true story that could not have been made up was doubly interesting and gripping. The research gone into this brought so much to the book and made it was so good it really kept me interested. I was recommended this by a colleague and very pleased that I got the book and have listened to it. I’ve now recommended it to my father.

Excellently told

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I thought the way the story of Eddie Chapman was told was gripping and I liked the fact that his faults as a human being were not overlooked.
And the way MI5 were never 100% sure of Eddie was fascinating, very unusual character who was fully engaged as a British double agent but had a soft spot for the Germans he liked and who treated him well.
Well worth a listen, one of the best military books I've listened to.

Even shady characters can have redeeming qualities

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