The Other Side of Silence

Ted Allbeury’s thriller novel, The Other Side of Silence (1983), follows young investigator John Powell as he tries to determine the motivation behind noted Soviet double-agent Kim Philby's desire to return to Russia. Powell is assigned to the case because he is unbiased, and British Intelligence wants fresh blood to make the call on Philby. As Powell roots into Philby's tumultuous past, he is forced to uncover the final stone, which no one has yet upturned – Philby's motivations for spying in the first place.

The novel opens on the Milord Committee, a segment of the British SIS responsible for monitoring the movements of notorious double-agent, Kim Philby. Born in then-British India, Philby worked as a journalist covering international conflict before becoming a high-ranking intelligence officer for MI6. In his career as an intelligence operative, during which he was appointed the first secretary to the British Embassy in Washington D.C., Philby was working as a double agent, providing information to the Soviet Union. He was eventually established as a pivotal figure in the Cambridge Five, a spy ring active from the 1930s to the 1950s, responsible for leaking information from Britain to the Soviet Union during World War II and the Cold War. Of the five spies included in the ring, Philby was the most notorious.

Allbeury's novel opens much later, however. Nearing his death, Philby is being monitored because he has requested permission from Moscow to return to the place he considers his home. The Milord Committee has been charged with granting Philby permission to go to Russia—it is their responsibility to determine if Philby is old and sentimental or up to no good.



The youngest committee member, John Powell has been tasked with making the verdict on Philby's latest request. He is joined by a few senior members of the committee, who have worked with Philby in the past. John is a unique character—orphaned as a child, the book explores, in part, his friendships with others who struggle to fit in. John begins a cautious romance with Vanessa, a divorcee, and befriends a colleague who has an Asian child.

As the novel progresses, and John dives deep into Philby's past, he suspects that some of his colleagues are not being completely transparent with him. After the so-called “Fourth Man” suspect is assassinated—most likely by the SIS itself—John becomes confused and suspicious. Soon, he finds out that Philby is, in fact, a triple agent and has long been working for the British. However, Philby is a difficult man to believe, and many of John's colleagues believe that in playing the part of a Soviet spy, Philby allowed the character to take over.

Ultimately, John decides that Philby is not a villain, but a victim of circumstance and the manipulation of the government. He makes it his mission to get Philby back home to Russia, but unfortunately misses his chance in a last-minute twist of fate and plot.



Formerly a British lieutenant colonel and secret agent, Allbeury authored more than 40 novels, short story collections, and radio plays. Thought to be the only secret agent to parachute into Germany during World War II, he remained in Germany until Allied Forces took the country. After retiring from the military, Allbeury worked as an ad executive and managed multiple pirate radio stations. He published his first novel, A Choice of Enemies, in 1972. He wrote under his own name and two pen names, Patrick Kelly and Richard Butler. The Other Side of Silence, adapted by BBC Radio 4 into a serial radio play in 1982, was the first of his novels to be adapted in this way.