Autobiography
Spycatcher
Spycatcher is a autobiography by Peter Wright. Banned in the UK from 1985 to 1988 for revealing secrets.
Description
About the work
Spycatcher is a autobiography by Peter Wright. Banned in the UK from 1985 to 1988 for revealing secrets.
The surviving record is interesting because it shows how even ordinary-looking books can acquire a charged political afterlife. As a autobiography, it can be read not only for subject matter but for the way form, tone, and circulation make a text feel dangerous, intimate, or politically usable to anxious officials.
It also matters as part of a wider censorship history in United Kingdom. The present page is a dossier starter built from source-tracked ban records; the surviving note currently says: Banned in the UK from 1985 to 1988 for revealing secrets. Wright was a former MI5 intelligence officer and his book was banned before it was even published in 1987. More publication history, translations, and close reading can be added later.
Overview
Why it was banned
Spycatcher entered censorship debates as a autobiography associated with controversy, publication history, and state scrutiny. In the current dossier, the main state objections cluster around political sensitivity.
The earliest event currently captured here is 1985 in United Kingdom, where United Kingdom authorities banned publication or circulation. Banned in the UK from 1985 to 1988 for revealing secrets. Wright was a former MI5 intelligence officer and his book was banned before it was even published in 1987. Banned in the UK from 1985 to 1988 for revealing secrets. Wright was a former MI5 intelligence officer and his book was banned before it was even published in 1987.
This entry is still incomplete: more jurisdictions, court orders, and translated justifications should be added over time.
This page is intentionally incomplete. The ban history is a starter dataset, not a final census of every jurisdiction or decree.
Counter and critical readings
Context, rebuttals, and criticism
- 100 Banned Books: Censorship Histories of World Literature Nicholas J. Karolides, Margaret Bald, and Dawn B. Sova
A compact reference on how censorship systems moved across states, churches, and courts.
- Banned Books: 387 B.C. to 1978 A.D. Anne Lyon Haight
Useful for comparing older obscenity, heresy, and political bans with modern free-speech disputes.
Ban history
Known government actions
| Date | Jurisdiction | Action | Reason | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | United Kingdom | banned publication or circulation | Banned in the UK from 1985 to 1988 for revealing secrets. Wright was a former MI5 intelligence officer and his book was banned before it was even published in 1987. | Banned in the UK from 1985 to 1988 for revealing secrets. Wright was a former MI5 intelligence officer and his book was banned before it was even published in 1987. |
Sources
Harvested references for this page
- Wikipedia: List of books banned by governments reference partial
- Wikipedia REST summary API database partial
- 100 Banned Books: Censorship Histories of World Literature book partial
- Banned Books: 387 B.C. to 1978 A.D. book partial