Pack of Lies
A member of the HH email list, Diane, asked: "Doel trivia: there was a story about an English couple in the late-60's, early '70's who were great friends with their next-door neighbors. Turned out the neighbors were arrested as Russian spies. Weren't the Doels the English couple involved?"
The answer is yes and no... The Doels met and knew the Russian spies, but the big story of the time related to a different English couple who also knew them. The story was made into a play "Pack of Lies", and since both this play and the play of '84' are often put on by theatrical companies in the same season, I thought it should be included here.
The story of "Pack of Lies" relates to husband and wife Bill and Ruth Search, and their daughter Gay (who is now a well-known TV and newspaper journalist in the UK). The Searches lived across the road from Peter and Helen Kroger, who had rented a bungalow at 45 Cranley Drive in Ruislip, England.
When they were arrested in January 1961, it was revealed that the Krogers weren't who they appeared to be - they were actually Morris and Lona Cohen, a pair of spies, who worked with fellow spy Gordon Lonsdale in the 1950's and 1960s, photographing and encoding as microdots various pieces of material which they then sent to their colleagues in Russia. The microdots were sent inside, of all things, antiquarian books (do you see how this is beginning to link to Frank Doel?). For the purposes of legitimating dealing in such books, Peter Kroger opened a rare-book shop opposite St Clement Danes Church in London - and whilst working in the book trade, became a firm friend of Frank Doel from Marks & Co.
As Helene Hanff wrote in "The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street", Frank and Nora Doel were friends with Peter and Helen Kroger for ten years or so, and one evening invited the Krogers to dinner - Helen arrived wearing a long black evening dress. "Helen, you look like a Russian spy!" said Nora. They all laughed - but a few months later, Frank and Nora read in the morning newspaper that they were Russian spies - Morris and Lona Cohen.
Further information about Morris and Lona Cohen can be found in the book "Bombshell: the secret story of America's unknown atomic spy conspiracy" by Joseph Albright and Marcia Kunstel - the Bombshell web site is based HERE.
The play "Pack of Lies" made it debut on the London stage in 1983 - and is still being produced around the world, some 15 years later.
One such production which took place was by the Exeter Little Theatre Company, here in my home town of Exeter, in England, in 1989 -just four months after the same company had put on '84'...
A more recent production which has been put on was that of the BurlOak Theatre Group, near Toronto, Canada - as part of The Oakville Drama Series, in which the Oakville Players put on '84' at the same venue. The Burloak write-up on the play was as follows:
Pack of Lies by Hugh Whitmore
October 23-25 and October 29-November 1, 1997
In 1961 Helen and Peter Kroger were convicted of spying and sentenced to prison. Set in London in the early 60's, this play explores themes of loyalty and deception. How might you wrestle with betrayal on all levels, personal and official?
The movie of "Pack of Lies" was filmed in 1987:
From Eonline
FactSheet (© 1981-1997 Videolog. All rights reserved)
| Category: | Drama |
| Run Time: | 97 (mins) |
| Distributor Name: | Cabin Fever Entertainment |
| Summary: | Two friends in 1961 are torn apart when British Intelligence invades their lives based on the belief that one of them is a KGB spy. |
From Videoflicks
internet video store
| Drama, 1987, COLOR , Running time: 100 minutes, NTSC, MPAA Rating: NR | |
| VHS NTSC -- USA Price ( $77.99US) (Canadian Price $107.99CDN) -- plus shipping | |
| Language: | English | |
| Genre/keyword: | based-on-play | |
| Directed by: | Anthony Page | |
| Cast (in alphabetical order): | Alan Bates - Stewart Daniel Benzali - Peter Schaefer Ellen Burstyn - Barbara Jackson David Corti - Malcolm Sammi Davis (I) - Julie Jackie Downey - Sally |
Teri Garr - Helen Schaefer Ronald Hines - Bob Margot Leicester - Thelma Peter Schofield - Powell Clive Swift |
| Written by: | Jeffrey Sweet (as Ralph Gallup) and Hugh Whitemore (play) | |
| Cinematography by: | Kenneth MacMillan | |
| Music by: | Stanley Myers | |
NOTE: Interesting to note that Ellen Burstyn (who played Helene Hanff in the 1982 Broadway play of "84 Charing Cross Road") played Barbara Jackson (Ruth Search's character) in this film!!!