FULLY UPDATED CENTENARY EDITION-An important book- Max Hastings, Sunday Times-An intriguing history of covert surveillance - thoroughly engaging- Daily TelegraphGCHQ is the successor to the famous Bletchley Park wartime code-breaking organisation and is the largest and most secretive intelligence organisation in the country. During the war, it commanded more staff than MI5 and MI6 combined and has produced a number of intelligence triumphs, as well as some notable failures. Since the end of the Cold War, it has played a pivotal role in shaping Britain''s secret state. Still, we know almost nothing about it.In this ground-breaking new book, Richard Aldrich traces GCHQ''s evolvement from a wartime code-breaking operation based in the Bedfordshire countryside, staffed by eccentric crossword puzzlers, to one of the world leading espionage organisations. It is packed full of dramatic spy stories that shed fresh light on Britain''s role in the Cold War - from the secret tunnels dug beneath V
