Spy Story (novel) Spy Story (novel) Spy Story is a 1974 spy novel by Len Deighton, which features minor characters from his earlier novels "The IPCRESS File", "Funeral in Berlin", "Horse Under Water", and "Billion Dollar Brain". In common with several of his other early novels, the chapter headings have a "feature". In "Spy Story" these take the form of excerpts from the fictional Studies Centre's rules. As in the earlier "Unnamed hero" novels, we never learn the protagonist's real name, only that he is living under the name Pat Armstrong. Armstrong works for the Studies Centre in London, where various tactical wargame
The Ipcress File (film) his kidnapper. Having previously read the file, Palmer realises that they are preparing to brainwash him. He uses pain to distract himself, but after many sessions under stress from disorientating images and loud electronic sounds, he succumbs. Grantby then instills a trigger phrase that will make Palmer follow any commands given to him. Palmer eventually manages to escape and discovers that he is really still in London. He phones Dalby, who is in Grantby's company at the time. Dalby uses the trigger phrase and gets Palmer to call Ross to the warehouse where he had been held. As Dalby and