<%@ Language = VBscript %> <% response.buffer = true %> <% session("cookietest") = "success" DSN = "the-friend" set conn = server.createobject("ADODB.Connection") Conn.Open DSN SQL = "SELECT TOP 1 * FROM articles INNER JOIN pdfs ON articles.articledate = pdfs.pdfdate WHERE category = 1 ORDER BY articledate DESC" set entries = conn.execute(SQL) articledate = entries("articledate") %> the Friend - Independent Quaker journalism since 1843

June 24, 2008

an unusual secret agent

We have an entreaty from John Roycroft.

'Kindertransport reminiscences encourage me to ask readers for factual or anecdotal memories of the late Paul Dukes (1889-1967)', whose life he is researching. John takes up the story: 'The chief obstacles to this are two: apart from his own two autobiographical books The Unending Quest and Secret Agent ST 25, no one seems to have written about him independently (at any length) and as regards the second world war the Official Secrets Act is still in force. However, Scarlet Pimpernel rescues from Austria (into Czechoslovakia) in 1938 may have been Paul's doing. Hence my appeal for access to family records, although rumours too will be welcome.'

Eye made a cursory search but all we could find out was that he was once a pupil in St Petersburg of the mystic teacher GI Gurdjieff. Obviously not your average secret agent.
(You can contact John on roycroft[at]btinternet.com)

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