SocialistAction 1983–88

The paper of the Socialist League, formerly the International Marxist Group, 1983–88

Defence of the realm: a dark thriller

· Socialist Action No. 128, 24 January 1986 · p. 10 of the scan · 626 words

The scan: 128-jan-24-1986-SA-UK.pdf (PDF, Marxists Internet Archive, opens at this page)

Uncorrected machine reading. This text was read by machine (Apple Vision OCR) from a scan of a newspaper page, and the page was cut into articles by machine, at the headlines found by their type size. Nothing has been corrected: expect misread words, text from a neighbouring article, and titles that are the machine reading of the headline, some of them only fragments. Quote from the scan, not from this page.
How this article was cut and titled: headline found by type size in the OCR geometry (split_tabloid.py); 4-5 of 7; machine-segmented newspaper page; uncorrected Vision OCR.

page 10 of the scan

Part of my soul NECESSARILY AN Mandela, whether it be conventional or unconventional, is bound to Secondly black people.

The book is basically about Winnie as she lives the life of an 'adult Bantu female' the • Mis made documents say. up of interviews with Anne Banjamin edited the manuscript the letters from Nelson Mandela Winnie, the tributes Winnie's friends, such as Dr Manus Dr Motlana, Rita Ndzanga and others He SLUREIC The first interview is autobiography of Winnie attract attention. First and because Winnie herself, the security branch have to read each and every letter in the house. It means pag. ing through each and every book on your shelves, lifting carpets, looking ünder lifting sleeping children trom looking under the sheets. It means tasting your sugar, your mealiemeal and every spice on your kitchen packing all your clothing going through each pocket. bound to inspire even more Winnie Mandelas to the stern reply. response to the question in the negative.

'Hero' Nick Mullen is • reporter workle lur li Daily Dispatch. Mulen ex poses a sex-spy scandal involving Dennis Markham, a Labour MP and a former defence minister, KGB agent named Kleist.

Reviewed by With only circumstantial evidence and words of Bayliss, Mullen nonetheless deterto probe further.

When the story breaks big Markham resigns his seat in parliament.

Bayliss reacts by taking 1o more drink than usual and hints at a frame-up involving the Special Branis foshd dead in tis flat of Shortly afterwards he a 'heart attack'.

Mullen is motivated to investigate further enlists the aid of Markham's secretary Nina Hackman. As the vestigation proceeds, the truth becomes clearer.

Mullen is lead to the inevitable conclusion blal the Markham affair 'has been usea as a cover-up iol a major state secret involvnuclear power dustry. It also involves the proprieter his own newspapel Despite minor flaws in editing, and a beginning Inal gives away the fact that there's more to what follows than meets the eye this is a gripping thriller. In some respects it compares WIld brilliant BBC series The Edge of Whether it's viewed as a liberal film exposing the worst excesses of a demoLa radical Canc staic. one exposing the state for what it is, the result is very effective. reporter: 'It's a free country isn't it?' No answer was The events that follow provide a CINEMA The perrormances. from Hackman to the slob reporter, are of the highest standard. Special praise must go for the portrayl of Bayliss the veteran reporter with a left wing past who 'quit the party in 56' - and to the fine Irish actor Gabriel Byrne Mullen. (Doubtless as his reputation grows media will start calling him British!)

It's a dark film in more ways than one. Without wishing cliches, the terms Orwellian and Kafkaesque apply. One scene in particular, where Mullen 'interviewed' by three upper-crust state security men as •Cols without any physical - as the Winston Holence Smith-O'Brien encounters in 1984.

Defence of the Realm not only rubbishes the state and the Street Shame, but with the help of a very good script and cast is does so convincingly. Go and see it.

Defence of the Realm, is on London release. present it is showing at the Odeon Haymarket. The future of the

----- pull-quotes -----

foremost because of the role she and her family is occupying in the national liberation struggle of the

Winnie the person, has been in the thick of it, giving part of her soul no less than anyone else. Lastly, she is the first black woman to have broken the neck of a policeman singlehanded.

ME R •

AT ONE POINT in this film, Defence of the Realm, seasoned hack Neville Bayliss says to the hero

← Other Books the official journal of the African NationalUNIONS print unions →

Something wrong on this page?