The Blandford Express

‘Ring of Spies’ is a British spy film, released in 1964, which is much based on the true story of the Portland Spy Ring. Filmed in Dorset, it featured Bernard Lee, who later played ‘M’ in the Bond movies, Margaret Tyzack, William Sylvester and David Kossof. Harry Houghton and his girl friend, Elizabeth ‘Bunty’ Gee were civil servants who worked at the Admiralty’s Underwater Weapons Establishment at Portland. Development work for Britain’s first nuclear submarine was taking place there. Both the heavy drinking Houghton and Gee developed a taste for the finer things in life that their modest Civil Service salaries were unable to finance. Houghton bought a car for which he paid cash and would spend more than his weekly salary on alcohol alone. Bunty was a middle aged spinster, with few friends, who lived with her mother. Until she met Houghton she had lived a sheltered life. Bunty had a reputation for being a particularly bad cook. Bunty had access to highly top secret files so in league ...

Leonard Burt was a Dorset Constabulary policeman whose groundwork led to the arrest of five members of the Portland Spy Ring in 1961. During the autumn of 1959 the Detective Officer became aware of Harry Houghton, a Portland Naval Base clerk whose lifestyle and excessive drinking were incompatible with his clerk’s salary. Burt found it quite incredible that this man, who had been sent back from Poland because of his excessive drinking and black market activities, had been posted to the Portland Underwater Establishment. Here, some of Britain’s most secret submarine defence activities were carried out. Houghton had been involved in selling penicillin, a drug which was in short supply in Poland. He also frequently boasted about his invitations to attend parties at the Polish Embassy where he met up with old Polish friends. Burt’s discreet observations led to him finding that Houghton spent many evenings drinking heavily in the Elm Tree public house, Langton Herring. He would then make hi...

  Harry Houghton and Gordon Lonsdale were two members of the Portland Spy. Houghton was a Civil Servant who stole military secrets from the then Portland Naval Base and Underwater Research Establishment. He passed these secrets for money onto Gordon Lonsdale who was a Soviet master spy. Both were arrested in January 1961 and found guilty of espionage and imprisoned. In their respective countries they have quite contrasting memorials. Lonsdale’s real name was Konon Molody and he was born in Moscow in January 1922. He spoke impeccable English with an American accent as he had spent time living in the USA. Upon his release from prison and return to the Soviet Union, he was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. This was the country’s highest award and was designed to recognise extraordinary courage, dedication and heroism. He had operated in Britain from around 1955 until 1961. When he died in October 1970, his body was laid in state at the KGB Officers’ Club and there is an elaborate t...

It was almost two o’ clock in the morning when civil servant Harry Houghton said he turned his Renault Dauphine into Blandford’s Ham car park. In the car’s back seats were two Soviet intelligence agents. They had been put ashore just before midnight from a submarine or trawler at Church Ope Cove on Portland. Also known as Smugglers Cove, it had been chosen because of its seclusion and was out of the sight of coastguards. Harry had in the early hours parked in Blandford at some distance from the only other parked car. This was driven by a Soviet agent, known just as John. He had met John previously in a lay by between Puddletown and Blandford. The second parked car had a square of white paper in its window, a sign that Harry had been told to look out for. It could have been a spy movie scene set in Blandford Forum but Harry Houghton was no James Bond. He was a middle aged, heavy drinking clerical officer in Portland Naval Base having previously been a Royal Navy Senior NCO. However Harr...

Tarrant Rushton was a large RAF base used for glider operations during World War II. It was then taken over by Flight Refuelling for the conversion of aircraft for the development of aircraft in-flight refuelling. However, between 1958 & 1965, the Tarrant Rushton airfield had a much more secretive and less publicised role. This was in support of the nation’s nuclear bomber deterrent, as Tarrant Rushton airfield became a QRA (Quick Reaction Alert) dispersal unit.   During 1958, contractors Costain reinforced the main runway and carried out other work to ensure the giant bomber aircraft could be accommodated. At times just a few miles from Blandford, there would have been up to four RAF Vickers Valiant bombers at Tarrant Rushton ready to become airborne in minutes charged with nuclear weapons. The bombers were from 148 Squadron at RAF Marham in Norfolk. As there was no suitable accommodation at the airfield, an old US Air Force Hospital building at Martin was used. At the time,...