Spies & The Crown - Part 1

From the Tudors to King Charles III, the royals have always been close to spies. Listen to find out!

Today’s monarchs get discreet MI5 briefings — but back in Elizabeth I’s day, her spymaster Francis Walsingham was inventing the modern secret service with beer-barrel dead drops, forged letters, and a plot that sent Mary Queen of Scots to the block.

This episode of Queens, Kings & Dastardly Things dives into the wildest tales of royal espionage: Christopher Marlowe, the playwright who may have been a double agent; John Dee, the Queen’s astrologer signing his reports “007”; and Queen Victoria’s Indian confidant Abdul Karim, hounded as a foreign spy by jealous courtiers. Fast forward to World War II and you’ll find Hitler’s agents scheming to kidnap Edward VIII and put him back on the throne as a Nazi puppet.

Plots, paranoia, and velvet cushions hiding sharpened daggers — when royalty meets espionage, the truth is stranger than any Bond film.

Hosts: Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams

Series Producer: Ben Devlin

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini 

Executive Producer: Bella Soames

Hosts: Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams

Series Producer: Ben Devlin

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini 

Content Editor: Joseph Palmer

Executive Producer: Bella Soames

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular.

Sign up to Palace Confidential, the FREE royals newsletter from the Mail's top experts. Delivered straight to your inbox every Thursday, it's the smartest way to stay in the royal inner circle. Just head to dailymail.co.uk/palaceconfidential to sign up today.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.