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The Man Who Was "Q". The Life of Charles Fraser-Smith
189 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1989
2 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
David Porter
256 books5 followersDavid Porter was born and raised in Tuscola, Illinois, and has been writing professionally since 1984. He is owner/publisher of three newspapers: The Tuscola Review, Arcola Record-Herald and Lebanon Advertiser.
He previously worked as Director of Communications for the Illinois Press Association and served as president of the Southern Illinois Editorial Association.
His book, The Make-out Room & Other Stories, is a compilation of 123 newspaper columns with a wide variety of subjects. Light reading.
His wife, Jennie, is a Kindergarten teacher in Tuscola. The two were classmates having first met in Kindergarten.
Note: Goodreads links all books written be people of the same name. The only book from me as of Nov. 29, 2020, is The Make-Out Room & Other Stories.
He previously worked as Director of Communications for the Illinois Press Association and served as president of the Southern Illinois Editorial Association.
His book, The Make-out Room & Other Stories, is a compilation of 123 newspaper columns with a wide variety of subjects. Light reading.
His wife, Jennie, is a Kindergarten teacher in Tuscola. The two were classmates having first met in Kindergarten.
Note: Goodreads links all books written be people of the same name. The only book from me as of Nov. 29, 2020, is The Make-Out Room & Other Stories.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 26, 2023
Absolutely fascinating. I perhaps should have expected that the book would have a lot to do with Christianity when I picked it up for a pound in King's Lynn Minster.
I am an atheist, so I was interested to note that missionary work was the driver of the subject, whose incredible work making gadgets in world war two takes something of a back seat in his life's purpose.
It makes you wonder what other ways there are to achieve a sense of purpose above and beyond your own survival. I suppose some people have children to tick that box. Maybe I'll start volunteering again.
Above all else (other than missionary work, which I thoroughly disagree with personally), this is a story of resourcefulness. I liked it, glad I picked it up!
I am an atheist, so I was interested to note that missionary work was the driver of the subject, whose incredible work making gadgets in world war two takes something of a back seat in his life's purpose.
It makes you wonder what other ways there are to achieve a sense of purpose above and beyond your own survival. I suppose some people have children to tick that box. Maybe I'll start volunteering again.
Above all else (other than missionary work, which I thoroughly disagree with personally), this is a story of resourcefulness. I liked it, glad I picked it up!
March 1, 2019
The title belies the story; much more a biography about Charles Fraser Smith than an examination of his credentials as Ian Fleming's "Q". It spends most of its time looking at his evangelical and missionary work, as well as his ingenuity as a farmer, which is interesting - to an extent. There is very little about his actual war-time service, and the litany of wondrous inventions he's purported to have developed are paid only scant lip-service; the things I really wanted to read about! Worth a read if you like that sort of thing, but don't expect it to satisfy your James Bond cravings.
April 18, 2018
I remember Charles Fraser-Smith from when I was a youth in Barnstaple where we attended the same church. Reading this book I found illuminating - putting a little flesh on the bones of stories I’d heard way back. Clearly a man of ingenuity & foresight.
Rather a goof early on in the book where the author refers to Churchill’s interaction in the 1940s with Theodore Roosevelt - a good trick that as he died over 20 years before - Franklin D. Was the man!
Rather a goof early on in the book where the author refers to Churchill’s interaction in the 1940s with Theodore Roosevelt - a good trick that as he died over 20 years before - Franklin D. Was the man!
October 10, 2021
Charles Fraser-Smith supplied British intelligence and soldiers with a number of innovative gadgets during WWII. When Ian Fleming began writing his James Bond novels, he based the detective’s gadget master, “Q,” on Fraser-Smith.
David Porter wrote a full biography of Fraser-Smith in The Man Who Was Q: The True Story of Charles Fraser-Smith, the “Q” Wizard of WWII.
Fraser-Smith’s parents died when he was a child. He was brought up by a missionary family and became a Brethren missionary to Morocco. His ministry was what we’d call a “tent-maker” type today, a phrase coined from when the apostle Paul made tents to support himself for a while. Fraser-Smith directed a large farm for which he hired local workers. He was able to have conversations with them about the Lord while working side by side.
Charles and his wife had to leave Morocco and go back to England when WWII started ramping up. As was told in the previous book, Charles was sharing some of his experiences with a local church one day, especially how he had to come up with innovative ways to do things in Morocco. A British Ministry of Supply official in the audience was impressed by Charles’ innovation and flexibility. A few days later, Charles was invited to work for the Ministry of Supply, but without much information about the work involved. Charles accepted, and his book tells about his experiences obtaining supplies or creating devices to help the British during the war.
Only one chapter here is devoted to Charles’ “Q” activities, since Fraser-Smith's previous book (The Secret War of Charles Fraser-Smith) had already been published.
After the war, Charles was heavily involved in relocating supplies that were no longer needed. He and his wife wanted to go back to Morocco, but a serious illness disrupted their plans.They then began dairy farming, with Charles creating innovative and sometimes controversial improvements in the process. He and he wife continued ministry work in various capacities.
After his wife died of cancer, Charles was involved in a number of ministry enterprises. One was funding a Bible translated into Arabic.
His son talked him into writing about his war experiences, since the period of secrecy he had agreed to was over. Charles did not consider himself very educated or articulate, so two ghost writers worked with him. “Charles was somewhat disappointed that the finished book contained relatively few of his outspoken Christian statements. But enough of his highly individual views, and his remarkable life, characterises the book for the reader to understand that this is no conventional story of espionage and undercover work” (p. 151). The book made him a celebrity, with interviews and showings of some of his gadgets. He wrote a couple of other books, with proceeds going to Arab World Ministries.
An appendix contains a treatise of Charles’ views of how missionary work could be expanded among Arabs by ministering to those who had traveled to Europe so they could go back and be a witness to their own people. He also advocated for unconventional ways (at the time) to minister to them, like hospitality, literature, and other methods. He stresses the importance of establishing indigenous, not westernized churches.
This book was originally written in 1989 and is no longer in print, but I had no trouble finding a used copy. I enjoyed learning more about Charles’ remarkable life.
David Porter wrote a full biography of Fraser-Smith in The Man Who Was Q: The True Story of Charles Fraser-Smith, the “Q” Wizard of WWII.
Fraser-Smith’s parents died when he was a child. He was brought up by a missionary family and became a Brethren missionary to Morocco. His ministry was what we’d call a “tent-maker” type today, a phrase coined from when the apostle Paul made tents to support himself for a while. Fraser-Smith directed a large farm for which he hired local workers. He was able to have conversations with them about the Lord while working side by side.
Charles and his wife had to leave Morocco and go back to England when WWII started ramping up. As was told in the previous book, Charles was sharing some of his experiences with a local church one day, especially how he had to come up with innovative ways to do things in Morocco. A British Ministry of Supply official in the audience was impressed by Charles’ innovation and flexibility. A few days later, Charles was invited to work for the Ministry of Supply, but without much information about the work involved. Charles accepted, and his book tells about his experiences obtaining supplies or creating devices to help the British during the war.
Only one chapter here is devoted to Charles’ “Q” activities, since Fraser-Smith's previous book (The Secret War of Charles Fraser-Smith) had already been published.
After the war, Charles was heavily involved in relocating supplies that were no longer needed. He and his wife wanted to go back to Morocco, but a serious illness disrupted their plans.They then began dairy farming, with Charles creating innovative and sometimes controversial improvements in the process. He and he wife continued ministry work in various capacities.
After his wife died of cancer, Charles was involved in a number of ministry enterprises. One was funding a Bible translated into Arabic.
His son talked him into writing about his war experiences, since the period of secrecy he had agreed to was over. Charles did not consider himself very educated or articulate, so two ghost writers worked with him. “Charles was somewhat disappointed that the finished book contained relatively few of his outspoken Christian statements. But enough of his highly individual views, and his remarkable life, characterises the book for the reader to understand that this is no conventional story of espionage and undercover work” (p. 151). The book made him a celebrity, with interviews and showings of some of his gadgets. He wrote a couple of other books, with proceeds going to Arab World Ministries.
An appendix contains a treatise of Charles’ views of how missionary work could be expanded among Arabs by ministering to those who had traveled to Europe so they could go back and be a witness to their own people. He also advocated for unconventional ways (at the time) to minister to them, like hospitality, literature, and other methods. He stresses the importance of establishing indigenous, not westernized churches.
This book was originally written in 1989 and is no longer in print, but I had no trouble finding a used copy. I enjoyed learning more about Charles’ remarkable life.
January 11, 2026
Too much general life information, not enough cool stuff he figured out how to do.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews