Her Secret Service: The Forgotten Women of British Intelligence

by Claire Hubbard-Hall

Rarely named and frequently written out of history, the remarkable women of British intelligence finally receive the recognition they so richly deserve in this expertly researched narrative that will be a must-read for fans of military history.

To the undiscerning eye, they were secretaries, typists, personal assistants, and telephonists. But those innocuous job titles provided the perfect cover for what were in reality a range of complex technical, clerical, and occupational roles. Often overlooked and underestimated by outsiders, the women of British intelligence encoded, decoded, and translated enemy messages, wrote propaganda, and oversaw agents, performing duties as diverse as they were indispensable.
 
One of those women was Kathleen Pettigrew, super-secretary to three consecutive Chiefs of MI6, the secret foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, and widely regarded as the inspiration for author Ian Fleming’s Miss Moneypenny. Serving her county loyally for four decades, Kathleen amassed a formidable knowledge of people and events. From the surprise apprehension of World War I courtesan spy Mata Hari to the unmasking of MI6 officer Kim Philby, the ‘Third Man’ of the Cambridge spy ring, Kathleen created, organized, and archived an empire of top-secret information.
 
Though most women toiled in offices and backrooms, there were also agent-runners and agents, prized for their ability to hide in plain sight. Drawing on extensive research and unique access to family archives, Claire portrays many of these remarkable figures—including the brilliant, multi-lingual Lunn sisters, glamorous spy Olga Gray; and Jane Sissmore, MI5’s first female officer— and reconsiders the priceless contributions they made.
 
In a field where women were often assumed to be little more than window-dressing, Secret Servants of the Crown reveals their multi-faceted, essential roles, offering a powerful and compelling testament to their many accomplishments.
 

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Espionage, Audiobook, Historical, Biography, World War II

352 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 25, 2025

Reviews

[Geevee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this, but I struggled through to page 150 and have called it a day.

The writing, for me, was disjointed and much time was taken up with unrelated or tenuous connections to the main characters. This may be because there is less information on some of these remarkable ladies, but the book and the pen pictures didn't flow and I found myself distracted and bored.

Ms Hubbard-Hall has helped to uncover the stories of some of these ladies [some are well known such as Joan Bright for example] but a shorter, more direct book may have been better for all.

[Josie Penfold · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into this expecting the story of a few key female secret agents during the war, but instead, the book presents brief snippets from the lives of a lot of women. While their stories are undeniably compelling, I never really got the full backstory of any one, leaving me wanting more depth and connection to these women’s stories 😤‼️🆗

[Caylee Guy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned to much about men from this book.

[MoonlightCupOfCocoa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a meaty, well-researched and eye-opening read! Every page is filled to the brim with stories of women that helped shape British Intelligence and, I’d argue, espionage as a whole. Not just their impressive careers, but also their personal journeys, personalities and human sides.

The stories span decades from pre-WWI to the 1950s with some glimpses of what the later decades brought some of the women mentioned. Of course, less documents are even valid for the later years, but the author did a wonderful job to still bring the read to a close in such a beautifully human way.

Seeing that the book is filled with stories and names, I feel I’ll need to revisit it again later as I admit I am new to the subject and found myself going down rabbit holes thanks to the book. I wonder how much more I would take in on the second read through.

All in all, this was such a great book that is clearly the product of much research and care. And it definitely left a lasting impact on me.

Finally, I would like to say thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the ARC. This review is purely my own thoughts and is shared voluntarily!

You can also find me on: Instagram

[James Kemp · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this, and would love to read even more about how women were the backbone of the British Intelligence Community. Her Secret Service is an awesomely well researched account of the female pioneers of the secret services and how despite being denied equal status they gave their all to protect the country and from domestic and foreign threats. 

As you might expect the older stories have more detail. A reflection in part of increased secrecy, and the impact of vetting that selected people less likely to talk about what they didas time went on. 

[Ne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really, really wanted to like this book but I'm concerned that it often doesn't cite sources. For instance, it says that Aileen Furse died of heart failure (according to the coroner), but I've found other sources that say it was influenza and yet others that say it was combination of causes (one of which was heart failure). The author doesn't disclose her source.

The author also claims that all three of Maxwell Knight's marriages were unconsummated. What does she base this on? I've not been able to find any other sources to back this allegation up (I'm not disputing its existence; I'm just saying its would have been good to cite a reference).

These are obviously tiny and insignificant examples, but they make me a bit dubious about some of the claims in this book. I also agree with other commenters' reviews that it suffers from being poorly organised, having a "bitty" approach to the women's (fascinating!) lives and generally leaving one rather unsatisfied about the depth of the women's contribution to the secret service. Bit of a shame, really.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

You know the scene from the James Bond movies - Bond enters or leaves M's office and interacts with Miss Moneypenny. But was Miss Moneypenny based on a real person? That is what Secret Servants of the Crown seeks to answer along with a number of other questions regarding the role of women in MI5 and MI6 during World War I and II.

Hubbard-Hall opens the book with Kathleen Pettigrew who was most likely the inspiration for Miss Moneypenny. She was the secretary for three heads of MI6 before she retired in 1958. She had witnessed the apprehension of Mata Hari during World War I, World War II, and the unmasking of Kim Philby.

Hubbard-Hall then spends several chapters dealing with the roles played by women during World Wat I and the birth of MI5 and MI6 as separate entities. There were the Lunn Sisters who spied for England in Russia and then one spied for Russia in England after the war. Then there was the case of Olga Gray who went undercover to prevent Soviet agents from obtaining plans for a top secret weapon. During World War II, women served in both MI5 and MI6 in England and overseas. They were part of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) with various female agents dying during operations in occupied territories. Then there were Rita Winsor and Ena Molesworth who traveled from Geneva across France during the German invasion to the Spanish border and then on to their new post in Lisbon. After the war the pair set up a travel agency - International Services - that would take high-end tourists to a variety of countries especially Soviet Union, and China. Besides the exploits of individual members of MI5 and MI6, Hubbard-Hall outlines the behind-the-scenes work played by many in running the various indexing systems crucial to the organizations, the code-braking and the training of agents.

So if the reader is interested in a behinds the screen look at British intelligence during the first half of the Twentieth Century, he or she should pick up Secret Servants of the Crown and find out what was actually happening!

Thanks Netgalley and Citadel Press for the chance to read this title.

[Kerry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book. But it has some issues that I can't overlook.

The first is how the women are referred to by first name and the men last. Not only is it retrograde and disrespectful, many women share the same first name, and the way the book plays fast and loose with chronology sometimes makes it difficult to tell which woman the author is talking about.

The second issue is how the author opines how it's "unfortunate that some within MI5 misunderstood the true nature of Phyl and Mary's closeness, labeling them 'lesbians.' While some women in the secret services may indeed have formed enduring, romantic same-sex relationships, Phyl and Mary's remained completely asexual. There was no stronger bond than sisterhood, and theirs was unbreakable." I don't know why this is unfortunate or why the the author has to defend these women against "accusations" of homosexuality.

The third issue is the calling of girls "women." A 14-year-old is described as the youngest "woman" to work for the secret service. No, she was a child, and the problems with this are not discussed in the book.

So though this book was recently published, it doesn't read that way.

[CatReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Claire Hubbard-Hall is an English historian; in her 2025 book Secret Servants of the Crown, she presents a history of women who worked in UK espionage - both the MI5 (domestic security) and the MI6 (foreign intelligence) - from the the first world war onwards. Unfortunately, despite dropping and re-picking up this book many times over the course of a week, this was a DNF at around 60% for me - I struggled to parse a clear narrative as there were so many people mentioned -- the book read like an info dump rather than a focused look at a handful of key individuals.

My statistics:
Book 143 for 2025
Book 2069 cumulatively

[Melisende · Rating 4 out of 5]

This, to date, summed up the role of women in the secret service and their forgotten contribution to British Intelligence. These women, behind the typewriters, were the keepers of secrets; and many took those secrets with them to the grave.

In this tome, historically rich in detail, Hubbard-Hall uses one of these women - Kathleen Pettigrew - as an anchor with which to set out the history and role of these women. Whilst their roles varied, from secretary, typist, agent, passive to active, their contributions, as documented, were nothing short of extraordinary.

This is a must read tome - and not just for those interested in the study of women's history, but for those interested in the overall history of British Intelligence and espionage, especially in those whose roles in the early days helped shape the services into what they are today. I myself will be delving back into this book and taking a more closer look at those Hubbard-Hall has brought to the fore.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting and much needed book!! Enjoyed reading about the role women played in the secret services of Britain, but just wish there was a bit more about the women!! Also liked the photos. These women played such an important role in British history and have been forgotten. Ms. Pettigrew is living on as Miss Moneypenny and we can be thankful for that!!

[Jonathan Crain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Through the personnel files, family records, and classified documents of Britain's intelligence services, Claire Hubbard-Hall reconstructs the careers of Kathleen Pettigrew, Vera Atkins, and many other women who shaped British intelligence operations from 1909 through the Cold War. These women managed vast networks of informants, broke enemy codes, and built the administrative systems that powered British espionage - yet their names rarely appear in official histories.

Hubbard-Hall pieces fragments from museum archives, private collections, and declassified files together to map the informal power networks women created within MI5 and MI6. Her analysis reveals how figures like Pettigrew leveraged their roles as secretaries and administrators to influence intelligence gathering and analysis, even while denied official authority. The women's writings - in diaries, letters, and unofficial memos - document their tactical innovations and their persistent battles against institutional barriers.

The book's structure mirrors its subjects' methods - patient accumulation of detail, careful cross-referencing of sources, and attention to seemingly minor administrative records that reveal larger patterns of influence. Hubbard-Hall demonstrates how women's official roles as clerks and typists masked their actual work directing operations, managing agent networks, and shaping intelligence priorities through their control of information flow.

Beyond adding missing names to the historical record, Hubbard-Hall's research exposes how gender dynamics shaped modern intelligence gathering. From its inception, the women who built British intelligence developed distinctive approaches to agent recruitment, information management, and covert operations - approaches that continued to influence the service long after the women were written out of official histories. Their story reveals not just individual accomplishments but how assumptions about gender both enabled and constrained the development of modern espionage.

This review is of an advance reader copy provided by NetGalley and Kensington Publishing. It is currently scheduled for release in the USA on February 25, 2025.

[Derek Nudd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Claire Hubbard-Hall here traces the growing influence of women in British secret services (mainly MI5 and MI6, though NID and Special Branch get a look-in). Much of the book hangs from the thread of one remarkable life - Kathleen Pettigrew - who pops up in the margins of many of the stories. There is inevitably going to be a touch of speculation about the lives of people who could not say what they did or who they worked for (and who were generally more conscientious about taking secrets to the grave than their male oppos). Hubbard-Hall owns up to the gaps which is refreshingly honest but can create a discontinuous narrative.
She is an acute observer of the constraints women's sex has placed on their professional lives during the 20th century and points out that, at the time of writing her book, Stella Rimington was the only woman to have achieved the pinnacle of leading a UK intelligence agency. By the time of this review MI5 has had two female directors-general, MI6 and GCHQ are both led by women. Does this mean that the glass ceiling has been shattered in those organisations? Only the people affected could tell us, and I'm sure they won't. A personal view is that we would get a better idea of any organisation by looking away from the boardroom and asking, are there as many mediocre women as mediocre men in positions of influence?
Sorry, I digress. An obvious comparator is Helen Fry's Women in Intelligence: The Hidden History of Two World Wars, and I know of at least one other book on the stocks addressing a related topic.
One minor beef: have you noticed how intelligence historians insist on wheeling out Ian Fleming at every opportunity? (I did once but I think I got away with it)

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hushed secrets, Ian Fleming's Miss Moneypenny inspiration, encoding, decoding, espionage, subterfuge, double agents, dangerous "toys", Bletchley Park, MI5/MI6, Official Secrets Act, post censorship, hidden staircases, invisible ink, exploding fruit, simulated interrogations, clothing replicas...it's all here. During World War II, female talents, ability to encourage people to spill information, unique skill sets, nerves of steel and ability to keep secrets were critical. These Special Operative Executive agents must have led fascinating and adventurous lives, though constant deception took its toll, too. So did constantly looking over their shoulders. This incredible book is built on copious private documents and research and should be on every reader's list.

After reading this book, my brain feels stretched and smarter. I learned more about powerful knowledge and its implications, 'dead letter boxes', 'Red Terror', changing history, secretarial duties which were often only a part of the job or a cover, implementation of the typewriter, keeping agents alive. Specific women, some of whom were socialites, are highlighted. Many did not expect "only" women to be capable of such classified work. 'Careless talk costs lives' was lived. These women take my breath away in their courage, energy, ability to plant explosives in gutted rats, blow up train tracks, rescue Jews, face any obstacle head on, and invent 'inestimable' filing systems without even blinking an eye. True heroines. I was a confidential secretary as a young woman and dreamed of such filing systems and top secret tasks!

Secret Servants of the Crown ought to be at the top of your reading list this year. It is gripping, thrilling, informative and impressive. I truly loved it!

[Christy fictional_traits · Rating 4 out of 5]

'To the outside world, British intelligence was presented as a manly enterprise, but behind the looking glass, it could not be more different'.

'Secret Servants of the Crown' sheds light on the thousands of women who worked as part of MI5 or MI6, across both of the world wars. Whether it was acting as a secretary (keeper of secrets), filing (excessive volumes of paper and somehow coherently grouping it), agent provocateur, espionage, sabotage or code-breaking, women provided a true cog in the engine that won the wars. Bletchley Park alone had a 'multi-skilled workforce of 9,000 employees...women accounted for almost 75 percent of the total staff in 1944, and just over half wore military uniform'.

Claire Hubbard-Hall painstakingly highlights and follows some of these women, as well as detailing the birth of MI6 (from MI5) as well as the development of the game of espionage. What is clear is that despite women being regularly recruited and relied upon, to serve in intelligence, and some, indeed, achieving respect and certain acclaim - none ever reached the lofty titles of their male counterparts. In fact, some of their agents were completely abandoned once their acts of espionage delivered the information required.

This book provides a plethora of information on women who served British intelligence. To that end, it is a dense book that is best read slowly. I did wish that more of the women's stories were told cohesively in a singular chapter, rather than some being sprinkled throughout and harder to follow. Overall, this book provides an illuminating account of all that women did for Britain during such pivotal decades in its history.

'She served her country unseen and unnoticed but was never invisible to the men and women she worked alongside'.

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this brilliant book about women’s jobs in British intelligence in the first half of the twentieth century, readers discover the stories of Katharine Pettigrrew, the Lunn sisters, Olga Gray, Jane Sissmore, and their contributions to MI5 and MI6. This book does a fantastic job of showing the variety of positions that women occupied in British intelligence, from secretary positions similar to Miss Moneypenny’s and archivists to agents and agent-runners working in the field, and how their positions evolved with espionage tactics and twentieth-century warfare. These incredible women are brought to life in fascinating detail, and Claire Hubbard-Hall explores their lives and jobs with incredible nuance into the complicating factors affecting their career options and the major espionage events they were involved in. Perfectly balancing information and readability, this book is incredibly approachable and a fantastic addition to the current historiography on women spies, particularly in the two World Wars and Britain, and fans of similar books will devour this one. Entertaining, inspiring, and engrossing, this new history book is an incredible insight into women’s roles in espionage and how they evolved and subverted the expectations for women’s military involvement in Britain during the first half of the twentieth century.

Thanks to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing, and Citadel for the advance copy.

[Barbara · Rating 2 out of 5]

It has some interesting stories of these women who played a vital part in the early days of the secret service but and unfortunately it’s a big but, the stories are drowned out by way too much detail. So much detail that it becomes a slog and a bit boring. Such a shame as Katherine Pettigrew, Winnie Spinks, the Lunn sisters and many more ladies deserve greater and wider recognition which I don’t think will come with this book.
I did give it 2 chances but abandoned it after 70 pages. I think Claire Hubbard - Hall needs to look at the books by Ben Macintyre to understand how to take a lot of historical facts and blend them into an interesting, gripping and memorable story.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a gift and I enjoyed the stories of a number of trailblazing women - my favourites were of Winnie Spink and Rita Winsor. Would buy those ladies a beer.
Unfortunately these great stories are undermined by some of the choices on presentation including a cluttered and incoherent narrative. I got annoyed by the almost constant harping on about Ian Fleming and Kim Philby- in a book that's meant to overturn the bias towards men in spy history books🤦‍♀️ The Miss Moneypenny references also felt like it was undermining the real contributions of these brilliant women. I was glad to have read it but equally glad I'm not reading it any more.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learning about this group of women was enlightening and has the research to back it up.
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected reader's proof from Kensington Publishing | Citadel via NetGalley.
Avail Feb 25, 2025 #SecretServantsoftheCrown by Claire Hubbard-Hall #NetGalley @KensingtonPublishing #Citadel @goodreads @bookbub @librarythingofficial @barnesandnoble @waterstones ***** #Review @booksamillion @bookshop_org @bookshop_org_uk #Nonfiction #Espionage #ColdWarEra #BritishIntelligence #WellDocumented

[The Book Butler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Secrets Servants of the Crown offers both the individual and collective history of women who served in Britain's intelligence service. The service of women has often been overlooked or dismissed as menial, Claire Hubbard-Hall tells us the contribution of women behind the scenes. She uses the experiences of individuals to weave an intricate, insightful depiction that instead of menial, the rolls women played are the threads that hold everything together. A good read for anyone interested in history of subterfuge and/or women.

[Kathryn Piepho · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was expecting a handful of women who impacted the war that are lesser known. Instead it is so many women’s stories that it is hard to follow all of them. I will say the author did her research on hard to find unsung heroes. It was just hard to keep up who was who and what they did to impact the war unless you write it all down to follow it.

Finally, I would like to say thank you to NetGalley & Kensington Publishing for the ARC. This review is purely my own thoughts and shared voluntarily.

[Gretchen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read focusing on the wartime history of women in the world of British MI6 and MI5. The continual references to Miss Moneypenny was not relatable to someone not familiar with James Bond. I wish more focus had been placed on Bletchley Park; having read The Rose Code I found that portion most interesting.

[John Langley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting and useful history of the Secret Services and the hitherto unacknowledged part played by women. This is well-researched and provides an unusual slant both on the history of MI5 and MI6 and on the attitudes of both sexes toward ‘suitable work for women’. The glass ceiling within the Secret Services seems to have been particularly armour-plated.

[Gail · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave up reading this book after sixty-six pages. It's really a shame. The premise looked really interesting. Unfortunately, this author does not know how to write. There's way too much detail on peripheral things, and not enough information on the main characters. It is leaden, boring, and a total waste of time. Don't bother with this one.

[Ash · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed learning about the various women of the British Secret Service. It’s disheartening that there was a hodgepodge of information that had to be pieced together, because the women couldn’t share their own stories. Glad this book could finally do that.

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

It felt like there was not enough material here and consequently there was a lot of padding. If anything this is more a brief history of the role and development of the British secret services during the two world wars.

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a brilliant read. 👏

[Steven Ridgely · Rating 4 out of 5]

My wife loved reading about inspiring, courageous women.

[Kate Mull · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing amount of research, but seemed bitty at times.

[Hope · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much detail. I gave up halfway through.