The Simple Things

Taking time to live well
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Image of George Blake: Alamy

Primer | Spy Gadgets

Iona Bower January 15, 2022

At the International Spy Museum in Washington DC, some of the world’s most intriguing and ingenious gadgets can be found. Here are just a few…

An unassuming lump of explosive coal was issued with its own dinky camouflage kit so that spies could colourmatch it to local coal.

America’s dog poo homing beacon directed planes to missile strikes in the 1970s. It doesn’t look very convincing, truth be told, but who’s going to be staring that intently at it, really?

The trees have ears! During the Cold War, a solar-powered tree stump listening device was placed near a Soviet airbase to eavesdrop for the CIA.

Pigeons are the world’s most decorated birds, and for good reason – 95% of wartime pigeons successfully completed their missions. Some even wore a tiny camera to spy on the enemy.

The KGB’s lipstick pistol could dispense the kiss of death in a flash. Not one to be fished out of a make-up bag by mistake on a bleary morning, though.

Closer to home, the Derwent Pencil Museum in Keswick has a rather nifty deception device of its own. In 1942, Charles Fraser-Smith – the man who inspired Ian Fleming’s character of Q – asked the Cumberland Pencil Factory to design a special hollowed-out pencil that could house a secret map, to be given to Lancaster Bomber pilots. A compass was hidden under the rubber, something we’d be bound to lose within about three minutes.

These gadgets were collated for our Looking Back feature on spies from our January issue. Read all about some of the world’s most famous spies (and their gadgets) from page 84.

More from our January issue…

Featured
Camping Alamy.jpeg
May 17, 2025
Outdoors | Camping Truths
May 17, 2025
May 17, 2025
Warbler.jpeg
May 13, 2025
Nature | Why Birds Sing at Dawn
May 13, 2025
May 13, 2025
Broad beans.jpeg
May 10, 2025
Recipe | Spring Beans on Toast
May 10, 2025
May 10, 2025

More looking back…

Featured
Carlton Hotel.jpg
Jun 20, 2024
History | Signature Hotel Dishes and Drinks
Jun 20, 2024
Jun 20, 2024
George Blake Alamy.jpg
Jan 15, 2022
Primer | Spy Gadgets
Jan 15, 2022
Jan 15, 2022
Walled garden Alamy.jpg
Apr 27, 2019
Why we love a secret garden
Apr 27, 2019
Apr 27, 2019
InThink Tagslooking back, spies, history
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  Buy ,  download  or  subscribe   See the sample of our latest issue  here   Buy a copy of our latest anthology:  A Year of Celebrations   Buy a copy of  Flourish 2 , our wellbeing bookazine  Listen to  our podcast  - Small Ways to Live Well
Feb 27, 2025
Feb 27, 2025

Buy, download or subscribe

See the sample of our latest issue here

Buy a copy of our latest anthology: A Year of Celebrations

Buy a copy of Flourish 2, our wellbeing bookazine

Listen to our podcast - Small Ways to Live Well

Feb 27, 2025
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The Simple Things is published by Iceberg Press

The Simple Things

Taking time to live well

We celebrate slowing down, enjoying what you have, making the most of where you live, enjoying the company of of friends and family, and feeding them well. We like to grow some of our own vegetables, visit local markets, rummage for vintage finds, and decorate our home with the plunder. We love being outdoors and enjoy the satisfaction that comes with a job well done.

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