The History Thieves

A revelatory book exposing the culture of concealment at the heart of the British government, from the award-winning author of Cruel Britannia.

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'As British official records are still "going missing", the significance of Cobain's work only increases' David Olusoga, author of Black and British

'In an astonishing book, the writer Ian Cobain reveals the mass destruction of records and archives, and the false memory it has left us with' Andrew Marr

In 1889, the first Official Secrets Act was passed. Since then a culture of secrecy has flourished. As successive governments have been selective about what they choose to share with the public, we have been left with a distorted and incomplete understanding not only of the workings of the state but of our nation's culture and its past.

Ian Cobain reveals how key moments in British history since the end of WWII have been manipulated by these official secrets. We follow the decades-long attempts to conceal the existence of Bletchley Park and its successor, GCHQ. We learn how a series of astonishing wars were fought during the 1960s and 1970s remained unreported. He also tells of the government's hidden links with terrorist cells during the Troubles, and reveals the state's peacetime surveillance techniques, not to mention its cynical manipulation of the criminal justice system and 'freedom of information'.

Drawing on previously unseen material and rigorous research, The History Thieves is a gripping story of how a complex bureaucratic machine has been created by the British state, allowing governments to evade accountability and bury their secrets.

'An engrossing account of how government officials burned the records of imperial rule as the British empire came to an end' Book of the Week, Guardian

'An important book which deserves to change the way we see our recent past...' Daily Mail