Baker Street Irregular by Sweet-Escott, Bickham - 1965

Methuen & Co 1965. Octavo, black heavy boards, silver gilt & red lettering to spine, top page edges stained red, 278pp, VG (light bruising to extrems, light tanning & foxing to page edges, prev. ownership ink markings to front eps, light tanning to eps) in d/w, VG- (moderate to heavy creasing & chipping to edges with multiple closed tears & discreet tape repairs, price clipped, light chafing & soiling)

Methuen, 1965-01-01. Hardcover. Very Good. 0x0x0. [From the library of Benjamin B. King.] Bound in publisher's black cloth. Red lettering. Hardcover. No dust jacket. Good binding and cover. Shelf wear. Short gift inscription on front end page, else unmarked. 278 p., 23 cm. <br> "Benjamin B. King was an intelligence officer for the British Royal Air Force during World War II. After World War 2 broke out in Europe in September 1939, he joined the British Royal Air Force as a 'penguin' who could not fly because of eyesight problems. He was assigned to Coastal Command at the airbase in Wick in the very north of Scotland, which provided defense for Britain in the North Sea, engaging the Germany Navy and Air Force. After his stint at Wick, Ben was transferred to the vital but vulnerable British base at Gibraltar off the coast of Spain, where the British monitored German and Italian military operations in the Western Mediterranean. While in Gibraltar, one of his tasks was to listen… Read More

London: Methuen, 1965. 1st edition. Nice Copy. octavo. dust jacket 278pp., maps, index, First long general survey of SOE by one of its senior staff. Sweet-Escott served in the headquarters of Balkan section alongside Nixon and Taylor. Major Ronald Prentice (1913-1980) served in Greece with SOE Force 133 during 1943 and Noah's Ark in 1944, and subsequently with the Parachute Regiment from 1946. Working under Geoff Hammond, he and Arthur Wickstead formed an effective team, organising and conducting the sabotage of German forces, and co-ordinating several Greek resistance movements. Very scarce