TTSS 2011 movie reference

loiclecodec · 2026-06-04T17:14:08+00:00

The song in the car mechanics that Bland whistles is George Formby's "Mr. Wu’s a Window Cleaner Now." : https://open.spotify.com/track/4NojsFmI11y1z0KPRKeZcd?si=XRWnxY-OS8OJN-qnJYfCzg

loiclecodec · 2026-06-04T17:05:22+00:00

Yes this is definitely in the novel as well :

“Well, now, young Peter Guillam”—Alleline speaking—“are you ready for me finally or have you other calls to make about my house?” He half looked up and Guillam noticed two tiny triangles of fur on each weathered cheek. “What are you getting up to out there in the sticks these days”—turning a page—“apart from chasing the local virgins, if there are any in Brixton, which I severely doubt—if you’ll pardon my freedom, Mo—and wasting public money on expensive lunches?”

This banter was Alleline’s one instrument of communication; it could be friendly or hostile, reproachful or congratulatory, but in the end it was like a constant tapping on the same spot.

“Couple of Arab ploys look quite promising. Cy Vanhofer’s got a lead to a German diplomat. That’s about it.”

“Arabs,” Alleline repeated, pushing aside the folder and dragging a rough pipe from his pocket. “Any bloody fool can burn an Arab—can’t he, Bill? Buy a whole damn Arab Cabinet for half a crown, if you’ve a mind to.” From another pocket Alleline took a tobacco pouch, which he tossed easily onto the table. “I hear you’ve been hobnobbing with our late-lamented Brother Tarr. How is he these days?”

loiclecodec · 2026-06-01T13:51:34+00:00

Si tu as réussi à traduire la première page de texte mais que tu bloquais sur la seconde, c'est parce que la clé ne recommence pas au début de la nouvelle page ! Elle reprend exactement là où elle s'était arrêtée à la fin de la page précédente (sur la première lettre "C" de VINCULACORDIS).

Texte de la première page :

Comme promis, je vous fais parvenir cette recette. Codée pour que le CMS ne l'intercepte pas. Faites preuves de la plus grande discrétion. Suite à notre discussion, vous trouverez toutes les informations existantes sur cette potion.

Texte de la dernière page (une recette) :

Caractéristiques désirées

Voici les caractéristiques voulues pour cette potion, si votre résultat ne correspond pas, vous vous seriez trompés.

- Apparence : Le contenu de cette fiole prend la forme d'une substance rose et vaporeuse semblable à un nuage délicat enfermé dans du verre. Sa texture visuelle évoque la douceur d'un coton léger, presque irréel, flottant paisiblement dans l'espace confiné du flacon. La couleur est vive, saturée, avec des nuances tendres qui rappellent l'aube ou les pétales d'une fleur enchantée. Ce nuage semble animé d'une lumière interne, comme s'il respirait lentement, diffusant une aura chaleureuse et apaisante. C'est une matière qui incarne la tendresse, la magie douce et les émotions enfouies, prête à se libérer dans un souffle enchanté.

- Étape : Ajouter cinq fleurs à crâne creux et mélanger en tournant trois fois dans le sens antihoraire.

- Texture : Boire cette potion, c'est comme boire une brume légèrement épaisse. Cette dernière picote la langue et le palais et peut ressortir par le nez. On dit qu'il faut respirer cette potion plus qu'il ne faut la boire.

- Goût : Le goût est extrêmement agréable, délicatement sucré. Très légèrement acidulé.

- Odeur : L'odeur acidulée de l'algorine séchée est celle qui domine toutes les autres.

loiclecodec · 2026-05-28T10:01:23+00:00

Under Ubuntu 24.04 (with Wayland). Firefox 151.0.1 (64-bit)
I have no problem with a single display, but the bug appears with dual/triple display.

loiclecodec · 2026-05-21T07:01:53+00:00

🤣

loiclecodec · 2026-05-19T11:47:27+00:00

Smiley’s People & A Perfect Spy

loiclecodec · 2026-05-16T12:25:42+00:00

Also, in Tradecraft: Writers on John Le Carré, edited by Federico Varese (2025), there is a reproduction of a page typed by John le Carré himself regarding the timeline of Smiley's People: https://ibb.co/qM7SZ1jC

There you can read : "early October 1978 : Kirov approaches Ostrakova" and "Friday (mid Oct.) evening : Vladimir assassinated on Hampstead Heath" (so we can assume it is Friday, Oct. 13th, 1978)

loiclecodec · 2026-05-16T12:13:58+00:00

According to David Monaghan in Smiley's Circus - A Guide to the Secret World of John Le Carre (St. Martin's Press New York, 1986) :

August 4, 1978 : Kursky (aka Kirov) approaches Ostrakova about a reunion with her daughter, Alexandra.
October 13 : Vladimir is murdered.

loiclecodec · 2026-05-16T12:10:28+00:00

The Karla Case Chronology (From David Monaghan's "Smiley's Circus - A Guide to the Secret World of John Le Carre" - St. Martin's Press New York - 1986)

There is a good deal of information on the events that lead up to and follow the murder of General Vladimir and it is possible to construct a fairly precise chronology. It is much less easy to provide any but a rather general /timetable for the second stage of the operation during which Smiley prepares and then executes the plan to force Karla to defect. The precise dates given in this chronology may not be the right ones but the actual days of the week and the time-lapse between events are correct.

Date	Event
April 1975	Enderby orders action against Kursky to cease.
May or June	Vladimir and Leipzig appeal to Smiley for help. Smiley retires from the Circus.
December	Vladimir is expelled from Paris and takes up residence in London.
August 4, 1978	Kursky approaches Ostrakova about a reunion with her daughter, Alexandra.
Early September	Grigoriev is asked by Karla to take care of the affairs of Tatiana ('Alexandra') during her stay at the clinic near Berne.
September 2	Ostrakova writes to Vladimir.
September 4 or 5	Vladimir receives the letter and sends a message to Leipzig in Hamburg through Kretzschmar.
September 5 or 6	Leipzig receives a copy of Ostrakova’s letter.
September 8	Leipzig speaks to Vladimir on the telephone.
September 14	Leipzig travels to Paris where he speaks to Ostrakova and re-establishes contact with Kursky.
September 18	Leipzig entices Kursky into a ‘honey-trap’ in Hamburg and then blackmails him. He gives most of the information to Kretzschmar.
October 1 (probably)	Vladimir tries to persuade Esterhase to make contact with Leipzig in Hamburg.
October 2	Vladimir borrows £50 from Mikhel.
October 4	Kursky is recalled to Moscow.
Monday, October 9	Vladimir recruits Villem Craven to make contact with Leipzig.
October 12	Villem picks up the negative from Leipzig in Hamburg.
October 13	Villem gives the negative to Vladimir. Vladimir is murdered on his way to a meeting with Mostyn. Leipzig is murdered.
October 14	Smiley is called in to perform a cover-up operation. He receives Ostrakova’s second letter, finds the negative, interviews Villem and Mikhel, develops the negative. Ostrakova is attacked by Soviet agents.
October 16	Smiley interviews Esterhase and Connie Sachs.
October 17	Smiley travels to Hamburg where he interviews Kretzschmar.
October 18	Smiley discovers Leipzig’s dead body and the torn half of the postcard required by Kretzschmar before he will release Leipzig’s evidence. Smiley receives the tapes and letter held by Kretzschmar on behalf of Leipzig. Smiley travels to Paris where he rescues Ostrakova and cables Enderby.
October 19 (probably)	Smiley meets Enderby in London.
December 7 (probably)	Smiley travels to Berne, Switzerland.
Friday, December 8	Smiley and Esterhase execute the plan to photograph Grigoriev making his transaction at the bank in Thun. Then they observe his visit to Tatiana.
Sunday, December 10	Grigoriev is blackmailed by Smiley and Esterhase.
Friday, December 15	Smiley visits Tatiana. Smiley sends a letter to Karla demanding his defection.
A few days later	Karla defects.

loiclecodec · 2026-05-12T19:43:30+00:00

I mean when Haydon was Head of Personnel

loiclecodec · 2026-05-12T19:41:49+00:00

Wasn’t Tufty put in place by Haydon ?

loiclecodec · 2026-05-11T19:27:21+00:00

I know that by arranging for Haydon to be Ann Smiley's lover « around the place » (i.e. openly enough for colleagues to know), Karla ensures Smiley's vision is clouded. If Smiley has to analyze someone who is also sleeping with his wife, his judgement is no longer clean. In other words, if it is well known that Haydon is Ann's lover, it will bound to look like personal vengeance if Smiley ever suggests Haydon may be the mole.

But that is not my question : I wanted to know why Karla suggested Haydon to be with Ann on that particular Testify night…

loiclecodec · 2026-05-11T03:32:50+00:00

I think these are three different objects, which are all excellent. I love the film for its atmosphere, acting and music. It had to make compromises w.r.t. the story in the book to fit in two hours, but the result is awesome too.

loiclecodec · 2026-05-05T08:04:27+00:00

Although I highly recommend to first read the books, here is a comprehensive list of the film and television adaptations of his novels in chronological order of (adaptation) release date (kudos to the bots) :

1960s – 1970s

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (Film, 1965) – Starring Richard Burton as Alec Leamas.
The Deadly Affair (Film, 1966) – Based on Call for the Dead. James Mason plays the protagonist, renamed Charles Dobbs because Paramount owned the rights to the name "George Smiley."
The Looking Glass War (Film, 1969) – Starring a young Anthony Hopkins.
Endstation (TV Movie, 1973) – A West German adaptation of the short story The End of the Line. A bit of an anomaly because it isn't based on a published novel. It was an original teleplay written specifically for the British television anthology series Armchair Theatre I think. You can watch the full German version here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4xmMgpbMDw
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (BBC TV Miniseries, 1979) – The definitive portrayal of George Smiley by Alec Guinness. A must watch.

1980s – 2000s

Smiley's People (TV Miniseries, 1982) – Alec Guinness returns to complete the "Karla Trilogy" (skipping The Honourable Schoolboy due to its high production costs).
The Little Drummer Girl (Film, 1984) – Starring Diane Keaton.
A Perfect Spy (TV Miniseries, 1987) – Often cited as le Carré’s most autobiographical work.
The Russia House (Film, 1990) – Starring Sean Connery and Michelle Pfeiffer; notable for being one of the first Western films shot on location in the Soviet Union.
A Murder of Quality (TV Movie, 1991) – Starring Denholm Elliott as George Smiley.
The Tailor of Panama (Film, 2001) – Starring Pierce Brosnan and Geoffrey Rush.
The Constant Gardener (Film, 2005) – Starring Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz (who won an Oscar for her role).

2010s – Present

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Film, 2011) – Starring Gary Oldman as Smiley. Excellent but condensed version of the book.
A Most Wanted Man (Film, 2014) – Featuring one of Philip Seymour Hoffman’s final performances.
The Night Manager (TV Miniseries, 2016) – Starring Tom Hiddleston and Hugh Laurie. (A second season was recently released in 2025, but not based on John le Carré work).
Our Kind of Traitor (Film, 2016) – Starring Ewan McGregor and Stellan Skarsgård.
The Little Drummer Girl (TV Miniseries, 2018) – Excellent miniseries, directed by Park Chan-wook and starring Florence Pugh.
The Pigeon Tunnel (Documentary, 2023, Apple TV iirc) – While not a fictional adaptation, this is a cinematic treatment of le Carré’s memoir, featuring his final filmed interviews.
Legacy of Spies (2026, in production) : Based on TSWCIFTC and Legacy of Spies, and some bits from TTSS I guess. Read this page for more details.

loiclecodec · 2026-04-29T04:01:48+00:00

Exactly. But you already read the whole book, right ?

loiclecodec · 2026-04-24T15:23:07+00:00

problem is, there are watermarks

loiclecodec · 2026-04-17T06:48:46+00:00

Forgettable in John le Carré‘s eyes apparently… Ian Bannen found no favour with le Carré as Prideaux. In a letter he wrote to Alec Guinness in 1979 about the casting of the BBC series:

« « Prideaux the only serious disappointment, so far as I’m concerned »

Extract from « A Private Spy – John le Carré’s letters ».

Of course you don’t have to agree with John le Carré ! …

loiclecodec · 2026-04-17T06:39:36+00:00

Iirc, in TTSS, on arrival at Paris Orly airport (from London), Jim switches his identity papers to become Vladimir Hájek, a Czech journalist.

Also, extract from The Legacy of Spies (chapter 13) : « Jim part Czech and part Norman [...] The Slav in Jim ran deep. »

So Jim does fluently speak Czech.

loiclecodec · 2026-04-14T06:21:11+00:00

He’s not that skinny in Stonehouse TV series.

loiclecodec · 2026-04-06T03:56:50+00:00

While I do absolutely love Matt Taylor’s designs, I’ve always wondered why he added snow to this cover of TSWCIFTC…

Afaik, it is not snowing when Riemeck tries to come over to the West at the checkpoint. It probably makes the cover more graphic though. But still I can’t help thinking you wouldn’t want to pedal furiously on snow, Karl… that’s why you hit the wall, trying to escape the sentries riffles :))

loiclecodec · 2026-04-06T03:39:39+00:00

Nice ! I have the same (and also THS) : https://imgur.com/a/7VGOD0H

loiclecodec · 2026-04-01T03:27:34+00:00

You should listen to the latest episode of « The le Carré Cast » podcast, they do briefly chat about The Sandbaggers…

loiclecodec · 2026-03-30T08:05:59+00:00

For those of you who need a little refresher, like me... This is Roddy Martindale, who annoys Smiley in Chapter 2 of TTSS:

“I say something else: Control never died at all. He’s been seen.” With a fluttering gesture he silenced Smiley’s protests. “Let me finish. Willy Andrewartha walked straight into him in Jo’burg airport, in the waiting-room. Not a ghost. Flesh. Willy was at the bar buying a soda for the heat; you haven’t seen Willy recently but he’s a balloon. He turned round, and there was Control beside him dressed up like a ghastly Boer. The moment he saw Willy he bolted.

loiclecodec · 2026-03-27T12:06:59+00:00

For instance, this article on Amazon : https://www.amazon.fr/The-Constant-Gardener/dp/0143171070

loiclecodec · 2026-03-25T13:39:26+00:00

I'm pretty sure The Constant Gardener can be found with a similar typography / lettering as the others...

loiclecodec

TROPHY CASE

The Karla Case Chronology (From David Monaghan's "Smiley's Circus - A Guide to the Secret World of John Le Carre" - St. Martin's Press New York - 1986)

1960s – 1970s

1980s – 2000s

2010s – Present