Gordon Thomas (author)

Gordon Thomas

Gordon Thomas (1933–2017) was a British investigative journalist and author, notably on topics of secret intelligence.^[1][2] Thomas was the author of 53 books published worldwide^[3] including The Pope's Jews,^[4] Secret Wars^[5] and Gideon's Spies.^[6]

Biography

Thomas was born in Wales, in a cemetery keeper's cottage where his grandmother lived.^[7] He had his first story published at nine years old in a Boy's Own Paper competition.^[7] With his father in the RAF, he travelled widely and was educated at the Cairo High School, the Maritz Brothers (in Port Elizabeth, South Africa) and, lastly, at Bedford Modern School.^[7] His first book, completed at the age of seventeen, is the story of a British spy in Russia during World War II, titled Descent Into Danger.^[7] He refused the offer of a job at a university in order to accompany a travelling fair for a year: he used those experiences for his novel, Bed of Nails.^[7] Since then his books have been published worldwide.^[8] He has been a foreign correspondent beginning with the Suez Crisis and ending with the first Gulf War. He was a BBC writer/producer for three flagship BBC programmes: Man Alive, Tomorrow's World and Horizon.^[9]

He was a regular contributor to the Japanese news magazine Facta and he lectured widely on the secret world of intelligence. He also provided expert analysis on intelligence for US and European television and radio programs.^[10] His book Gideon's Spies: Mossad's Secret Warriors became a major documentary for Channel Four that he wrote and narrated: The Spy Machine. It followed three years of research during which he was given access to Mossad’s main personnel. The documentary was co-produced by Open Media and Israfilm.^[11]

Gideon's Spies: Mossad's Secret Warriors has so far been published in 16 languages. A source for this book was Ari Ben-Menashe, a former Israeli intelligence agent, and Israeli spy Rafi Eitan. According to Charles Foster in Contemporary Review: "Writers who know their place are few and far between: fortunately Mr Thomas is one of them. By keeping to his place as a tremendous storyteller without a preacher's pretensions, he has put his book amongst the important chronicles of the state of Israel."^[12]

His last book was Shadow Warriors: Daring Missions of World War II by Women of the OSS and SOE (written with Greg Lewis).

He died on 3 March 2017 at the age of 84.^[13]

Personal life

Thomas was a cousin of the poet Dylan Thomas who helped him publish his first book.^[7] He divided his time between his homes in Ireland and England, with his wife, an interior designer.^[7] His five children work in various parts of the entertainment industry.^[7]

Major awards

• International Television Award from the Festival de Télévision de Monte-Carlo
• Two Mark Twain Society Awards for Reporting Excellence
• Edgar Allan Poe Award for Shipwreck

Selected Bibliography

• Thomas, Gordon; Max Morgan-Witts (1969). The Day their World Ended (8 May 1902, eruption of Mount Pelée). Stein and Day. 
• Thomas, G.; Witts, M. (1977). Enola Gay. Stein and Day. ISBN 978-0812821505. 
• Thomas, G.; Witts, M. (1979). The Day the Bubble Burst: A Social History of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. Doubleday. ISBN 978-0385143707. 
• Thomas, G. (1989). Journey Into Madness: The True Story of Secret CIA Mind Control and Medical Abuse. Bantam Press. ISBN 0-553-05357-4. 
• Thomas, G.; Martin Dillon. The Assassination of Robert Maxwell. Robson Books. ISBN 978-1861056429. 
• Thomas, G. (1999). Gideon's Spies: The Secret History of the Mossad. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-25284-6. 
• Thomas, G. (2001). Seeds of Fire: China and the Story Behind the Attack on America. Dandelion Books. ISBN 1-893302-54-7. 
• Thomas, G. (2001). Cancer Doctor: The Biography of Josef Issels, M.D. Dandelion Books. ISBN 978-1893302181. 
• Thomas, G. (2009). Secret Wars: One Hundred Years of British Intelligence Inside MI5 and MI6. Thomas Dunne Books. p. 448. ISBN 978-0-312-37998-8. 
• Thomas, G. (2012). The Pope's Jews: The Vatican's Secret Plan to Save Jews from the Nazis. Thomas Dunne Books. p. 336. ISBN 9780312604219. 

Book clubs

Thomas's works have appeared in:

• The Book of the Month Club
• The Literary Guild Book
• The Readers Digest Book Club

Film adaptations

• Voyage of the Damned won five Academy Award nominations
• Enola Gay won the Emmy Awards Foreign Critics Prize
• Experiences won the Juries and Critics prize at the Monte-Carlo Film Festival

See also

• William Francis Buckley
• Robert Maxwell, on whose life Thomas was an authoritative writer
• The Spy Machine

References

External links

• My Story: Gordon Thomas
• Gordon Thomas website