08/05/2026 Forum Plus - Stalin’s Apostles: The Cambridge Five and the Making of the Soviet Empire

Published August 5, 2026 at 4:05 PM MDT

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In this episode of The Forum Plus, Jim Falk talks with British journalist and author Antonia Senior about her acclaimed new book, Stalin's Apostles: The Cambridge Five and the Making of the Soviet Empire. Drawing on newly declassified documents from Britain and Eastern Europe, Senior offers a fresh assessment of one of the most damaging espionage networks of the twentieth century.

The conversation examines how five young Cambridge University students became committed Soviet spies, betraying Britain and the United States by passing some of their nations' most closely guarded secrets to Moscow. Senior argues that their actions influenced the course of World War II and the Cold War far more profoundly than previously understood, including the transfer of intelligence that helped accelerate the Soviet Union's atomic weapons program.

Jim and Antonia also explore why the Cambridge Five remained hidden for so long, and why their story continues to resonate today as democracies confront new questions about loyalty, disinformation, and national security. It is a fascinating conversation about espionage, ideology, and the enduring consequences of betrayal.

Host: Jim Falk

Guest: Antonia Senior, Author, Stalin’s Apostles