The Churchill Series - Nov. 17, 2005

(One of a series of daily posts about Winston S. Churchill.)

Remember Thompson, Churchill's bodyguard?

For most of the years 1921 through 1945 Scotland Yard Detective Inspector Walter Thompson was Churchill's personal bodyguard. They traveled over 200,000 miles together, often in very dangerous circumstances.

Thompson kept notes during his service and planned to publish a book when he retired. But officialdom prevented him from doing so. The notes were put aside, forgotten, and then some while back rediscovered.

Now, they're the basis of a book, Churchill's Bodyguard: The Authorised Biography of Walter H Thompson, just published in the UK, and of a 13 part TV series, Churchill's Bodyguard, which begins airing in the UK this Sunday, Nov. 21.

Of course, the question: When it's all summed, what did Thompson think of him?

According to a London Sunday Times article of Oct. 25 :

From Thompson's plain prose, an unmistakable and living character breaks surface: irascible, impish, brave, with a child's curiosity and swift change of mood, unsullied by lasting spite or temper. No man could fake the lack of side and spin and the generosity of spirit. Not, at least, to his bodyguard.

I can't wait.

Here's a link to The Times article and another in The Guardian.

Here's a bit about the TV series (you'll need to scroll down.)