Blair of the Mounties 38-09-12 34 The Most Famous Spy

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Blair of the Mounties – "The Most Famous Spy"

Podcast: Harold's Old Time Radio
Episode: Blair of the Mounties 38-09-12 – 34 "The Most Famous Spy"
Date: September 6, 2025
Host: Harolds Old Time Radio

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Overview

This episode of Blair of the Mounties is a dramatized retelling of the legendary spy Mata Hari's encounter with British intelligence officers during World War I. Set in the Golden Age of radio storytelling, it explores the tension, suspicion, and personal tragedy at the heart of Mata Hari’s espionage, challenging long-held myths and revealing the authentic human element often overlooked in her story.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Myth vs. Reality: Setting the Stage

• The episode opens by discussing the mythologizing of Mata Hari, the famed “Red Dancer” and alleged German spy.
• [01:20] Harry Harding sets the framework:

  "Her exploits as a secret agent of Germany have been exaggerated out of all semblance of the truth... it portrays a strain of human feeling in this famous spy, which, though little known, is authentic."

2. Inspector Blair and Bruce Harding’s Exchange

• [02:18 - 03:06] Journalist Bruce Harding presses Inspector Blair for details about Mata Hari's real exploits.
• Blair discloses that he saw Mata Hari during an interrogation at Scotland Yard, offering to recount the event from intelligence reports.
• Insightful banter sets a personal, almost confessional tone, contrasting professional duty and human curiosity.

  [03:56] Harry Harding: "She told Scotland Yard that's why she was going back there. Just to see her daughter. You wouldn't expect him to swallow that one, would you?"
  [04:06] Inspector Blair: "That's the trouble. They were too smart to believe the truth when they heard it."

3. The Interrogation of Mata Hari

• [05:05 - 07:50] A gripping, dramatized interrogation of Mata Hari at Scotland Yard reveals both her poise and her desperation:

  • She deftly deflects accusations of working against England, highlighting that suspicion fueled public intrigue and her career as a performer.
  • She protests that her sole desire is to visit her daughter in Holland, confronting the officers’ cynicism with a plea for compassion.

    [06:13] Mata Hari: "As you say, I am the one to answer the questions... By what right do you, an English police officer, accuse me? This is not France."

• The officers are unmoved:

  [07:03] Harry Harding: "I'm sorry, Mata Hari, but I have instructions to return you to Paris for examination."
  [07:09] Mata Hari: "To Paris? For me that means death... Oh, monsieur, just for one little moment. Surely there is no harm in that."

4. Clever Espionage and Hidden Tragedy

• [08:09 - 10:46] Mata Hari is placed under surveillance but manages to pass a secret message:

  • She subtly instructs a waiter, Franz, to deliver a handkerchief (containing secret information in invisible ink) to a German contact, Herr Brandt, despite being under constant watch.

    [10:13] Mata Hari: "After I finish this wine... Under this serviette you will find a handkerchief. You must take it without being seen."

• A devastating military consequence follows:

  [11:05] Inspector Blair reports: "A British battleship the Conqueror, sunk in the channel by the German submarine U69. Heavy loss of life..."

• The British team reflects on being potentially outmaneuvered, questioning how such crucial information slipped through.

5. The Double Life and Ultimate Fate of Mata Hari

• [12:10 - 13:12] The story's aftermath reveals:
  • The handkerchief Mata Hari passed contained a map and critical naval details.
  • Herr Brandt, her contact, was a German spy and British double agent who later disappeared.
  • Mata Hari was later executed by the French after being double-crossed by both sides.

    [12:44] Harry Harding: "And Mata Hari never got to see her daughter?" [12:36] Inspector Blair: "No. A few months after that she was condemned to death and executed by the French government, just on general principles."

  • The French secured final proof only after the German intelligence compromised Mata Hari.

6. Challenging the Legend

• The episode debunks the dramatic account that Mata Hari disrobed before the firing squad:

  [13:15] Inspector Blair: "Oh, no, better leave that part out, Hardy." [13:21] Harry Harding: "Gee."

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On believing the unbelievable:

  [04:06] Inspector Blair: "That's the trouble. They were too smart to believe the truth when they heard it. Even you don't always recognize truth, Harry."

• Mata Hari’s despair:

  [07:09] Mata Hari: "To Paris? For me that means death... Oh, monsieur, just for one little moment. Surely there is no harm in that."

• Cynicism about espionage:

  [11:46] Harry Harding: "Of course, it might not have been Mata Hari, but I have an idea it was. She's a marvelous worker."

• Demystifying her end:

  [13:15] Inspector Blair: "Oh, no, better leave that part out, Hardy." [13:21] Harry Harding: "Gee."

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Important Timestamps

• [01:20] – Introduction to Mata Hari and the premise of the episode
• [02:18 – 03:06] – Inspector’s background and setup
• [05:05 – 07:50] – Interrogation of Mata Hari at Scotland Yard
• [08:09 – 10:46] – Mata Hari’s secret message in the restaurant
• [11:05 – 11:52] – News of the British battleship catastrophe and fallout
• [12:10 – 13:12] – Aftermath: Mata Hari’s fate and the double cross
• [13:15 – 13:29] – Final notes on historical accuracy and closing banter

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Overall Tone

The tone is classic dramatic radio: brisk, earnest, and slightly theatrical, blending history, suspense, and a layer of human tragedy. The script frequently blurs the lines between personal sympathy, professional suspicion, and the everyday realities of espionage.

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This episode brings a nuanced, gripping re-examination of Mata Hari, delicately separating fact from lore, and restoring her human dimension amid the murky world of wartime spycraft. Perfect for fans of historical drama and classic radio storytelling.

Transcript

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[Inspector Blair]

Lair of the Mounties.

[Harry Harding]

We present episode 33 in Blare of the Mounties. The story told in this episode is a reminiscence of the secret service work in the World War. The name of Mata Hari, the red dancer, had become notorious in history. Her exploits as a secret agent of Germany have been exaggerated out of all semblance of the truth. And while in the story now to be presented, some of the names have been altered and the story itself reconstructed for dramatic effect. It portrays a strain of human feeling in this famous spy, which, though little known, is authentic. Our opening scene is in the Savoy Hotel, London, where we find Inspector Blair talking to Bruce Harding, crack American reporter on the London Evening Star. Well, well, if it isn't my old friend, Inspector Blair. Gosh, I haven't seen you since.

[Inspector Blair]

Not since three days ago when you tried to chisel a story out of me. Well, how's the newspaper business?

[Harry Harding]

Oh, so nothing ever happens these days. How's fishing, Inspector?

[Inspector Blair]

Oh, that's fair.

[Harry Harding]

Hey, you know, it's funny, Inspector. Old man Pressman disappears in Stony Haven and you go down there fishing.

[Inspector Blair]

Yes, quite a coincidence.

[Harry Harding]

Yes, sure.

[Inspector Blair]

And then there was that burglary at.

[Harry Harding]

Lord Waverton's place down at Coombe Seaton. The paper shoots me down there, I don't get a thing. But I run into you fishing again. Yeah, fishing again.

[Inspector Blair]

Come on, Inspector, come on. We never got a thing.

[Harry Harding]

But there was A strong wind blowing somewhere. Oh, come now, listen, Inspector. Now, all kidding aside, couldn't you just give me the lowdown on that affair just in confidence?

[Inspector Blair]

You wouldn't publish it, of course.

[Harry Harding]

Publish it? Why, I should say not.

[Inspector Blair]

Why, no, Inspector.

[Harry Harding]

You know me better than that.

[Inspector Blair]

Well, say, do you know I'm writing.

[Harry Harding]

A book on famous spirit?

[Inspector Blair]

That ought to be good.

[Harry Harding]

Sure it'll be good. I'm putting a lot of work into it.

[Inspector Blair]

Fine, as long as you don't use your imagination too much. Oh, nothing like that, Inspector.

[Harry Harding]

Nothing but the truth that I'm working on. Mata Hari's life. Say, there's a woman for you, the hardest of them all.

[Inspector Blair]

I wouldn't say that, Harding.

[Harry Harding]

Why? What do you know about her, Inspector?

[Inspector Blair]

I saw her once when she was brought into Scotland Yard for questioning. I was on intelligence work at the time. You were?

[Harry Harding]

Say, now, there's something. I never got the inside of that story.

[Inspector Blair]

Personally, I think it was one of the most dramatic things in her career.

[Harry Harding]

It was Scotland Yard authorities that turned her back. Wasn't it that time she tried to get to Holland?

[Inspector Blair]

Yes, they turned her back. Ever since 1914, she'd been trying to get to Holland.

[Harry Harding]

Yes, I know she had a daughter in Holland. She told Scotland Yard. That's why she was going back there. Just to see her daughter. You wouldn't expect him to swallow that one, would you?

[Inspector Blair]

No, I wouldn't expect him to believe it. That's the trouble. They were too smart to believe the truth when they heard it. Even you don't always recognize truth, Harry.

[Harry Harding]

Well, you try me once. But say, Inspector, how about that story?

[Inspector Blair]

All right. Matta Hari was on a Dutch ship bound from Lisbon to Rotterdam via Southampton. The French Second Bureau signaled the news to London and asked the British authorities to pick her up and return her to France. Why to France? Well, all her activities had been against France up to then. She had never worked against England. Well, there's no record that she ever worked.

[Harry Harding]

Especially against England.

[Inspector Blair]

No. Well, anyway, here's the story as I got it from George Drake, who is Detective Inspector on the Special Branch. Just picture the scene as it opened in the office of Sir Basil Thompson at New Scotland Yard. Three o' clock in the afternoon. This is the woman's hair.

[Harry Harding]

Oh, yes. Bring her in. Drake, take this chair, please.

[Mata Hari]

Thank you, monsieur.

[Harry Harding]

You are the woman known as Mata Hari?

[Mata Hari]

That is correct, monsieur.

[Harry Harding]

I have reliable information that you are a spy in the employ of the Third Section of the German General Staff.

[Mata Hari]

So? And from what source does monsieur obtain.

[Harry Harding]

This Information, Madam, you are not here to ask questions, but to answer them. I am waiting for your answer, but.

[Mata Hari]

I have no answer to give you.

[Harry Harding]

Indeed? Is it not true that last winter you were a dancer at the Folio Beaug in Paris?

[Mata Hari]

That is quite true.

[Harry Harding]

And was it not commonly known in Paris that you are a spy in the pay of the German government?

[Mata Hari]

But, monsieur, surely you understand that it is what you call the publicity. Many people come to the theater to see this mysterious Mata Hari who is supposed to be a spy. It is good for the box office. Yes.

[Harry Harding]

You deny that you ever worked as.

[Mata Hari]

A spy, Monsieur, There is nothing to deny. And you forget something, I think.

[Harry Harding]

What do you mean?

[Mata Hari]

As you say, I am the one to answer the questions. And I will tell you if I was a spy in France. By what right do you, an English police officer, accuse me? This is not France.

[Harry Harding]

You are right. I make no accusation.

[Mata Hari]

Ah, that is better.

[Harry Harding]

Monsieur, why do you wish to go to Holland?

[Mata Hari]

But that is my country. My home is there.

[Harry Harding]

You have no other reason? No special business?

[Mata Hari]

It is to see my daughter, who is there.

[Harry Harding]

Or more likely, to carry information to Germany?

[Mata Hari]

Oh, no, monsieur. It is the truth. For three years I have not seen my little one. Four times now I have tried to leave France for Holland. Three times they stopped me. And now I am so near. You will not stop me, surely, monsieur.

[Harry Harding]

I'm sorry, Mata Harry, but I have instructions to return you to Paris for examination.

[Mata Hari]

To Paris? For me that means death. And yet, if I cannot go to Holland or then let my child come to see me here in London. Just for one moment, then I will go. Oh, monsieur, just for one little moment. Surely. Surely there is no harm in that.

[Harry Harding]

No, I. I'm sorry, it can't be done. I've got to send you back. Oh, Drake.

[Inspector Blair]

Yes, it.

[Harry Harding]

Turn this lady over to the matron, then come back.

[Mata Hari]

One moment, please, Monsieur Commissionaire. You will not do what I ask.

[Harry Harding]

I have already told you that is impossible.

[Mata Hari]

Then I tell you that it will be very bad for your country if you do this thing.

[Harry Harding]

What do you mean?

[Mata Hari]

That is all I have to say.

[Harry Harding]

All right, Drake?

[Inspector Blair]

Yes, sir. Any order, sir?

[Harry Harding]

Sit down a minute, Drake. What do you think of that woman?

[Inspector Blair]

We'll see. Somehow I have an idea she's telling the truth about wanting to see her daughter.

[Harry Harding]

That may be, but unfortunately she's a very clever spy. And anyhow, there's no choice. The orders are imperative to return her to France.

[Inspector Blair]

Seems a pity, sir. I suppose they'll court martial her when she Gets to Paris?

[Harry Harding]

Oh, I don't think so. Most likely they'll let her run for a bit. You see, there's a whole network of spies. They might get a line on the system.

[Inspector Blair]

What boat will they put her on?

[Harry Harding]

Let's see, this is Friday. Send her down to Folkestone for Monday's boat.

[Inspector Blair]

Very good, sir. We'll hold her in Pentonville prison till then.

[Harry Harding]

No, no, no, no. I don't mean that. I want her to run loose for a couple of days. There's still a few enemy agents in London. She might give us a lead. Put two of your best men on. See that they don't lose her.

[Inspector Blair]

Very. Madame would like a table?

[Mata Hari]

Oui, if you please. Is France still here?

[Inspector Blair]

Yes, madame.

[Mata Hari]

I would like him to wait on me.

[Inspector Blair]

Certainly, Madame. Madame will be seated.

[Mata Hari]

Thank you.

[Inspector Blair]

Ah, you will attend to the ladies.

[Harry Harding]

Oui, Monsieur.

[Mata Hari]

Hello, France. Paul.

[Inspector Blair]

Madame?

[Harry Harding]

You will take something?

[Mata Hari]

Just. Just some biscuits and a half bottle of Paul Roger.

[Harry Harding]

Certainly, madame, at once.

[Mata Hari]

France.

[Harry Harding]

Yes.

[Mata Hari]

You know me, France, of course. Be careful. There are two policemen. Don't look. They are by the door. Keep smiling, France, and set the table.

[Harry Harding]

Yes. Already I have seen them. Good.

[Mata Hari]

Where is Herr Brandt?

[Harry Harding]

Tomorrow he arrives on a Monday he returned to Holland.

[Mata Hari]

So listen carefully, Franz.

[Harry Harding]

Yes, madame.

[Mata Hari]

After I finish this wine, bring quickly the bill. When I leave, clear the table quickly. Under this serviette you will find a handkerchief. You must take it without being seen. Give it to her, Brandt. Is it understood?

[Harry Harding]

Perfectly, madame. Under the message say to Herr Brown.

[Mata Hari]

Age 24, sends a souvenir from England.

[Harry Harding]

Ah, a souvenir from England. Yes, madame. I shall remember then.

[Mata Hari]

Then bring the wine quickly from at once.

[Harry Harding]

Mad. Come in. Oh, hello, Drake. You look as though you've seen a ghost. What's wrong?

[Inspector Blair]

Didn't you hear the news, sir?

[Harry Harding]

What news?

[Inspector Blair]

A British battleship the Conqueror, sunk in the channel by the German submarine U69. Heavy loss of life, but she was.

[Harry Harding]

She was in a heavily mined channel. How did that sub commander find the passage?

[Inspector Blair]

And how do you know there's anything to go in there for?

[Harry Harding]

He could never have got into a protected channel without inside information. Now, I wonder. That woman, Mata Hare. Do you think she fooled us after all?

[Inspector Blair]

That's impossible, sir. We never lost touch with her. Even the chambermaid. The hotel was one of our people. There was only that time in the restaurant when she spoke to the waiter. Barnes and Spellman watched her. They swear she couldn't have passed it.

[Harry Harding]

Of course, it might not have been Mata Holly, but I have an idea it was. She's a marvelous worker.

[Inspector Blair]

If so, it's the first time she ever worked against us. Maybe it was that that was what she meant when she gave us that warning.

[Harry Harding]

Perhaps. Well, it's all in the game.

[Inspector Blair]

And that, Harding, is the story of Mata Hari's handkerchief. Why, you.

[Harry Harding]

You mean that?

[Inspector Blair]

It was really hard work ingout about it. After the war we got the whole story. That handkerchief had a map of the protected channel in invisible ink. Also information that a lone battleship would be moving from Sheerness to Plymouth. The rest was easy.

[Harry Harding]

And this man Brandt was a German spy?

[Inspector Blair]

Man who got the handkerchief? Yes. He was also working for the British government. Playing both ends. We suspected it for a long time before we were certain.

[Harry Harding]

And then?

[Inspector Blair]

Well, then one day he disappeared. I see.

[Harry Harding]

And Mata Hare never got to see her daughter?

[Inspector Blair]

No. A few months after that she was condemned to death and executed by the French government, just on general principles. As you know, they finally got definite proof of some of her spy activities.

[Harry Harding]

How did that happen?

[Inspector Blair]

Very curious combination of affairs. Back in France, she made a deal with the French authorities. She was to be allowed finally to go to Holland if she'd give information against Germany.

[Harry Harding]

But the deal didn't go through.

[Inspector Blair]

Part of it. Mara Hari kept her end of the bargain. Gave away a whole list of German spies. But they didn't do any good. No. When the German intelligence people heard about it, they gave Mata Hari away in a wireless message. That was the first definite evidence the French had got on Mata Hari. And it was on that evidence they condemned her.

[Harry Harding]

Then came the dramatic finish.

[Inspector Blair]

Oh, I've got all that.

[Harry Harding]

Part Mata Hari disrobing for the firing party and so on.

[Inspector Blair]

Oh, no, better leave that part out, Hardy.

[Harry Harding]

Why? But that's great stuff. What's wrong with it?

[Inspector Blair]

Just that it never happened.

[Harry Harding]

Gee.

[Inspector Blair]

Well, there I go again.

[Harry Harding]

Well, fancy sputter. And next time you go fishing, you might give me a break.

[Inspector Blair]

Maybe.

[Harry Harding]

You have heard episode 33 in blare of the Mounties. Our next story in this series is entitled the Ibex Mystery.