Tim Tate

STATEMENT ON RESIGNATION FROM THE SOCIETY OF AUTHORS MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

I have today resigned from the Management Committee of the Society of Authors.

The Society of Authors has recently been under an intense spotlight over allegations about Twitter posts by Joanne Harris. On Thursday, November 17, members overwhelmingly rejected a motion at the AGM, calling on Joanne to step down from her role as Chair of the Management Committee.

I can only speak of my experience in Management Committee meetings in the past year, but in these I have always found Joanne a courteous and professional Chair.  Likewise, I have always found the Society’s CEO, Nicola Solomon, assiduously attentive to the issues which the Management Committee tried to address.  I do not know either well enough to be called a friend, but our discussions have always been collegiate and respectful.

Unfortunately, my recent experience of the Management Committee itself has been rather less congenial.

I was honoured to be elected to the Committee one year ago. I had hoped to use my background, and the lessons learned during my 40+ year career, to serve the Society’s 12,000+ members.

It was for my experience as an investigative journalist that at the start of this month I was appointed to a subcommittee, set up to examine formal complaints made against Joanne and Nicola by five individuals.

Sadly, the impartiality and integrity of that investigation subcommittee has been undermined internal disputes. Today, these made it impossible for me to continue, in good conscience, to serve on the Management Committee.

As a journalist, author and film-maker I have campaigned for openness and transparency. I am therefore posting below the full text of my resignation letter, submitted today.

I have always been – and remain – a believer in the importance of trade unions. The Society of Authors is a trade union and its staff do extraordinary and vital work on behalf of all authors. I am profoundly saddened that recently the Society’s Management Committee has not conducted itself as well as those staff, and the creative community we all belong to, deserve.

Posted on November 18, 2022 by Tim Tate

ROYAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY

I’m very flattered to have been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

RHS does very important work, and I hope to be able to contribute.

My thanks to all at the Society for this genuinely humbling endorsement.

Posted on May 26, 2022 by Tim Tate

INTERVIEW IN LETTER REVIEW

I was very flattered to be interviewed by Letter Review – Oliver Adams’ excellent site for professional writers to share their experiences and tips.

Here’s the resulting piece.

Interview with Nonfiction Author, Investigative Journalist, and Film Maker Tim Tate

My thanks to Oliver and all at Letter Review.

Posted on March 16, 2022 by Tim Tate

TIM’S TOP 5 BEST COLD WAR SPY BOOKS

Inspired – I think – by my biography of cold war superspy Michał Goleniewski, Shepherd For Authors asked me to write about my top five Cold War spy books – both non-fiction and fiction.

The piece was published this morning (January 31). If you enjoy books about espionage in the murky depths of the Cold War, do visit the site: here’s the link:

https://shepherd.com/best-books/non-fiction-and-fiction-cold-war-spies

Posted on January 31, 2022 by Tim Tate

TIM TATE AT LITERARY FESTIVALS – AUTUMN 2021

I was delighted to speak at three literary festivals this autumn about my biography of Cold War super spy Michał Goleniewski.

Photo credit: Joe Fenna, @fennaphoto

Huge thanks to all the organisers at the Chelsea History Festival, Ilkley and Berwick Literary Festivals for all their hard work and support.  Berwick’s appearance was via Zoom, and  is now viewable on the Festival’s YouTube page: if you enjoy Cold War spy stories, this one is truly extraordinary !

Posted on October 25, 2021October 25, 2021 by Tim Tate

BOOK SIGNING AT GOLDSBORO BOOKS

I was very honoured to have been asked to sign copies of The Spy Who Was Left Out In The Cold at the fantastic Goldsboro Books in London’s West End

Thank you to all the team there for a terrific experience.

And if you love books … make sure you pop into Goldsboro: it’s a really wonderful book shop!

Posted on May 30, 2021 by Tim Tate

I was very honoured to be interviewed for the February 2021 edition of Ivan Wise’s excellent podcast, Better Known.

It’s a great series, focusing attention on six things which should be – as the title says – better known. I hope my suggestions provoke some interest and food for thought.

You can find the podcast here: https://betterknown.co.uk/2021/01/31/tim-tate/

Posted on February 1, 2021 by Tim Tate

TIM TATE SPEAKING AT INAUGURAL CONFERENCE ON RIGHT WING STUDIES

I’m deeply honoured to have been invited to speak at the Inaugural Conference on Right Wing Studies at the University of California, Berkeley, this weekend.

The conference – link here: https://crws.berkeley.edu/right-wing-studies – is a fantastic opportunity for those concerned by the history of fascism and the global growth of neo-fascism to hear academics and experts from around the world present detailed analyses of how, 80 years after the outbreak of World War Two, we are in today’s dangerous waters.

On Saturday afternoon I’ll be presenting a précis of my paper, Treason, Treachery and pro-Nazi activities by the British ruling classes during World War Two. It’s downloadable at the Conference’s e-scholarhsip website – link here: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/99w0p17j –   but, for ease, it’s also viewable below.

The research which informed this paper was undertaken for my book, published last September in the UK by Icon Books, Hitler’s British Traitors. I’m delighted to announce that a US edition, entitled Hitler’s Secret Army, will be released by Pegasus Books on July 2. The team at Pegasus have done an outstanding job on the cover (below).

So, too, has Duncan Heath and everyone at Icon Books. The hardback cover was stunning, and the paperback edition – which will be published in the UK on July 4 – is just as strong.

I’m very much looking forward to the conference this weekend. If you’re in – or can get to – Berkeley – do come along. I guarantee it will be worth your time.

Posted on April 22, 2019 by Tim Tate

TRUE CRIME MUSEUM TALK – NOV 13 2015

I’m flattered to have been asked to speak at The True Crime Museum in Hastings about my most recent book, Yorkshire Ripper – The Secret Murders.

The book was prompted by extraordinarily diligent and painstaking research by a former police intelligence officer, Chris Clark.  Chris’ work showed quite clearly that Peter Sutcliffe, the Yorkshire Ripper, was the most likely perpetrator of 23 additional murders, as well as several more attempts.  The victims were men as well as women; and far from being an exclusively northern predator, the evidence suggests that Sutcliffe struck all over the country – from London to the Midlands as well as Yorkshire and Manchester.

These crimes have never – officially – been solved.  That has caused immense distress to some of the victims families (as well as the surviving victims).  But worse even that this, three entirely innocent men each spent half a lifetime in prison for murders which Sutcliffe almost certainly carried out. They were eventually freed – but the cases remain open.

My talk at the Crime Museum will detail these unsolved murders and attempted murders.  But it will also examine how Sutcliffe was – wrongly –  excluded as a suspect, and how a blanket of official secrecy has been thrown over these cold cases.

YORKSHIRE RIPPER – THE SECRET MURDERS

Where:  The True Crime Museum, Seafront, Hastings, TN34 1JP

When:  7pm: Friday, November 13, 2015

Posted on November 3, 2015 by Tim Tate

Broadcast Interview

Broadcast interview with Tim about his investigation into child pornography: Channel 4 – The Paedophile Next Door.

Posted on July 18, 2015July 19, 2015 by Hambly Freeman