Behind the Crimes with Robert Murphy

• John Le Carré - taking on the spymaster's Smiley series: Nick Harkaway

  How do you take on one of the biggest literature legacies of the past half-century? That’s what Nick Harkaway was asked to do after his father, David Cornwell (aka John Le Carré) died in 2020.Karla’s Choice, Nick’s latest in the George Smiley world puts us in a sinister world of subterfuge, Hungarian agents and 1960s London.In this interview, Nick tells us how he approached the writing of Karla’s Choice, what he learned from his father - and what he had to learn on-the-job, and how he balances writing in the Le Carré world with his own books.You can get Karla’s Choice here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Karlas-Choice-John-Carr%C3%A9-Novel-ebook/dp/B0CZPPHPCR?ref_=ast_author_mpbPLUS: My book ‘Decoy’ won ‘Book of the Year’ at the True Crime awards in London last week. Judges praised the quality of the writing, the high-end research and journalism and the issues raised.You can grab a copy here: UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Decoy-secretive-historical-undercover-operations/dp/0008666814/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0USA: https://www.amazon.com/Audible-Decoy/dp/B0CS6XNB54?ref_=ast_author_dpCanada: https://www.amazon.ca/Decoy-secretive-historical-undercover-operations-ebook/dp/B0CLTGQDQJ?ref_=ast_author_dpAustralia: https://www.amazon.com.au/Decoy-secretive-historical-undercover-operations-ebook/dp/B0CLTGQDQJ?ref_=ast_author_dpWant to watch this interview? Check it out here: https://robertmurphy.substack.com/publish/posts/detail/165538997/share-center This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertmurphy.substack.com

  --------  

  36:26
• Nick Harkaway discusses Le Carré, Karla's Choice and the secrets of a great spy novel.

  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertmurphy.substack.com

  --------  

  29:12
• Lee Child: Jack Reacher, my true crime inspiration, my writing craft and why I've left America

  # Subscribe for free: robertmurphy.substack.com #Recorded at CrimeFest in Bristol, England, May 2025Lee Child on how his TV career helped him write, his favourite authors, how he ‘writes the fast stuff slow and the slow stuff fast’ and handing the Jack Reacher baton to his brother Andrew.Links mentioned in the show:https://www.jackreacher.com/us/https://www.crimefest.com/Decoy book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Decoy-secretive-historical-undercover-operations/dp/0008666814/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0To Hunt A Killer: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hunt-Killer-gripping-Longlisted-non-fiction/dp/0008507473/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0Want to watch the interview? Paste this into your browser: https://robertmurphy.substack.com/p/lee-child-talks-reacher-his-craft This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertmurphy.substack.com

  --------  

  37:31
• Lee Child talks Reacher, his craft, his inspiration and why he's leaving Trump's America

  Lee Child on how, when faced with redundancy he turned to writing. Why he’s made it as a multi-million selling author and others haven’t, the secrets of his craft… and why he’s leaving Trump’s America to return to the United Kingdom. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertmurphy.substack.com

  --------  

  29:14
• Drug Wars

  Neil Woods spent fourteen years as an undercover police officer, helping dismantle some of Britain’s most notorious drug gangs.Yet after his biggest victory he came to the conclusion: was it worth it?He started to feel that the problem was helped by repeated failures of governments to tackle the cause of Britain and America’s drugs epidemic. In fact by handing control of drugs supply to criminals governments were the cause.‘A doctor controlling it (drugs supply) with a prescription pad has no incentive to find new customers and so the market doesn't develop. So what happened is it becomes a pyramid scheme. If you're organised crime, you want to find new customers, you find someone who's addicted and you say, ‘Look, if you find five more customers and you sell to them, they'll pay for your habit’ and the pyramid scheme explodes.’Neil’s views are controversial views. But they are compelling. In this interview Neil describes:* How the world used to experience two competing drug policies: The American System and The British System - with the American System winning.* How following criminalisation in the 1960s, addicts fell into the hands of organised crime.* How some schemes decriminalising drugs have worked in recent years.To find out more about Neil and to get copies of his books ‘Good Cop, Bad War’ and ‘Drug Wars’ click here: https://www.neilwoods.net/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertmurphy.substack.com

  --------  

  31:09

Flere Historie podcasts

Trendige Historie podcasts

Om Behind the Crimes with Robert Murphy

Behind the Crimes with Robert Murphy: Podcasts i samme familie