Blunt ‘was Burgess’s Lover’ (Press, 15 January 1980)
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Summary: Blunt ‘was Burgess’s Lover’ (Press, 15 January 1980)
The spy scandal in Britain resurfaced on 15 January 1980, following allegations connecting Anthony Blunt, the Queen's art adviser and a former Soviet agent, to a homosexual relationship with fellow spy Guy Burgess. The claims were made in the London "Observer" by Goronwy Rees, an Oxford academic and a close associate of Burgess, just before his death from cancer at the age of 70. Rees revealed these details of their relationship during a conversation with author Andrew Boyle while hospitalised in Charing Cross, London. Rees, who was the estates bursar at All Souls College, Oxford, had known Burgess during a period when he, Burgess, and another agent, Donald Maclean, were all spying for the Soviet Union prior to their flight to Moscow in 1951. This incident marked one of Britain's most significant espionage scandals; Burgess and Maclean had been tipped off by Kim Philby, a third British spy, prompting their escape. According to "Observer," Rees described Blunt’s denial of the homosexual relationship as a “convenient falsehood,” asserting that Burgess often boasted about his sexual exploits and that Blunt was among those he had seduced. The publication also touched upon Rees' medical condition prior to his death, indicating concerns from his doctors about potential external intrusions after a drop in his blood sugar levels which suggested he might have received a considerable dose of insulin from an outsider. The scandal had gained momentum following the publication of Boyle's book, "The Climate of Treason," which ultimately led to the public exposure of Blunt as the "fourth man" in the notorious spy ring. British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher confirmed Blunt's involvement in Parliament on 15 November 1979, revealing that Blunt had been a part of the British Security Service during World War II. He had confessed in 1964 to providing information to the Soviets and had subsequently retained his position at Buckingham Palace while being assured immunity from prosecution in exchange for his disclosures. This admission rattled the British public and reignited intense interest in the scandal surrounding espionage within the UK government.
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