AN AMERICAN SPY IN LONDON

It is one of the most significant footnotes of World War II — the amazing story of a fascist spy inside the American Embassy in London who could have changed the course of the war. Tyler Kent was the embassy cypher clerk, and in that capacity stole enough of the top secret communications between FDR and Winston Churchill to threaten Roosevelt’s re-election in 1940. Kent was arrested by British Intelligence on the eve of returning to America, with nearly 2,000 documents that would have further enflamed the isolationist movement. Imprisoned in England for the duration of the war, Kent kept silent about his treachery until 1981, when David Taylor and his colleague Robert Harris tracked him down in a trailer park in McAllen, Texas. This is Tyler Kent’s story.

SPEAKER BIOGRAPHY:

Hailing from Nottinghamshire, England, David Taylor came to the United States in the 1970s as a high school student. He became the BBC Washington producer in 1981 and in 1992 began his career as a documentary producer.  He has researched, written and produced well over 25 documentary films and received a Peabody and Emmy awards for his coverage of U.S. and military history. During his career, he has had the opportunity to get to spend time with a host of remarkable historic figures, and he takes great delight in sharing the stories surrounding the creation of the films.