Sergei Kostin speaks at the Hay Festival of Literature and the Arts
Acclaimed spy writer and television documentary maker, Sergei Kostin, took part in a high profile event at the Hay festival in Wales. Speaking on the state of espionage in the post-Cold War world, and on the perception of spies in contemporary fiction, Mr Kostin gave an entertaining and vivid picture of his own thoughts and views, which he often portrays in his own works.
Kostin has published several non-fiction books on the Cold War and espionage, such as, The Man behind the Rosenbergs, published in English by Enigma Books in 2004, and a series of spy thrillers revolving around his hero Paco Arraya, including Paris Weekend, available in English translation, and his latest work The Death of a White Mouse, which has just come out in Russia to great acclaim. Farewell, the film based on Kostin’s book Bonjour Farewell and starring Emir Kusturica, is out in UK cinemas now and centres around a real life KGB affair, described by Ronald Reagan as ‘one of the most important espionage cases of the 20th Century. An English translation of the book will be published in August.
Sponsored by Academia Rossica - Fictions: what’s secret now? - also included Christopher Morgan Jones, former intelligence operative and author of An Agent of Deceit. It was chaired by BBC Radio 4 presenter, Max Easterman.
Sergei Kostin’s own account of the event can be found here
Fictions: What's the secret now? All is revealed!
A packed audience at Sergei Kostin's event
Sergei Kostin curling up with a book at the end of an exciting day!