Book Of The Week: Agent Zigzag

Basic Info

Genre: Drama (Radio)

Broadcaster: BBC Radio 4

Broadcast dates: 5 Parts from 29 Jan to 2 Feb ‘07, Mon to Fri, 9.45-10.00am

Production Co: BBC Radio

Cast & Crew: Damian Lewis (Reader), Emma Harding (Producer)

Description

Eddie Chapman was a rogue, a criminal, a confidence trickster, a hero and a betrayer of all. At the start of the Second World War, he was recruited by the German Secret Service and became a highly prized Nazi agent. But he was also a secret spy for Britain: alias Agent Zigzag. Actor Damian Lewis reads Ben Macintyre’s compelling account of Britain’s most extraordinary wartime double agent – one of the most gripping, previously untold stories of the Second World War.

Genuinely courageous and able to withstand withering interrogations from both sides, Chapman was a dashing, charming and fiercely intelligent man, whose talents led to a single end: breaking the rules. He wore loud suits, drove fast cars and had a woman in every port.

This was a man who courted contradictions as much as he courted adventure. Inside the traitor was a man of loyalty and inside the villain was a hero. The problem for Chapman, his spymasters and his lovers, was working out where one ended and the other began. In 1943, Colonel Tim Stephens of MI5 said of Chapman’s story: “In fiction, it would be rejected as improbable.”

MI5 have only just released their material on Chapman, and Macintyre has full access to all of the spy’s manuscripts, letters and photographs. What emerges from this treasure trove is an exhilarating true story of loyalty and betrayal, of courage and cowardice.

Source: BBC

Episode Summaries

Episode 1 -
By Ben Macintyre. The previously untold story of Britain’s most extraordinary double agent. 1: At the start of the war, British criminal Eddie Chapman is recruited by the German Secret Service. He soon becomes a highly prized, and decorated, Nazi agent. What the Germans don’t know is that he is also working for MI5. Damian Lewis reads the dramatic story of the charismatic Agent Zigzag. Abridged by Doreen Estall.

Episode 2 -
By Ben Macintyre. The previously untold story of Britain’s most extraordinary double agent. 2: Former British con, Eddie Chapman, has been recruited as a spy by the Abwehr, the German intelligence organisation, who have given him the codename Fritz. Agent Fritz is about to be parachuted into England for his first mission: to sabotage the De Havilland aircraft factory in Hertfordshire. Damian Lewis reads the dramatic story of the charismatic Agent Zigzag. Abridged by Doreen Estall.

Episode 3 -
By Ben Macintyre. The previously untold story of Britain’s most extraordinary double agent. 3: ‘Fritz’ is now in England preparing for his first mission, codenamed ‘Walter’, to sabotage the De Havilland aircraft factory in Hertfordshire. What the Germans don’t know is that Fritz is also working as double agent ‘Zigag’ for MI5. Damian Lewis reads the dramatic story of the charismatic Agent Zigzag. Abridged by Doreen Estall.

Episode 4 -
By Ben Macintyre. The previously untold story of Britain’s most extraordinary double agent. 4: In March 1943, MI5 sent Chapman back to his German controllers in order to gather information on the workings of the Abwehr. Damian Lewis reads the dramatic story of the charismatic Agent Zigzag. Abridged by Doreen Estall.

Episode 5 -
By Ben Macintyre. The previously untold story of Britain’s most extraordinary double agent. 5: For the last year, Fritz has been in Oslo in the company of his girlfriend, Dagmar Lahlum, and his German spymaster, Dr Graumann. But now Agent Zigzag is on his way back to Britain. Damian Lewis reads the dramatic story of the charismatic Agent Zigzag. Abridged by Doreen Estall.

Source: Radio Times