A GOOD READ

Wednesday's edition of The Independent (London) carries a long obituary of Thomas Corbally, who is described as a"mysterious American businessman intimately involved in the Profumo affair." This is the Soviet spy scandal involving call girls and politicians that shook Britain in 1963 and hastened the resignation of Harold Macmillan as prime minister later that year. You have to hand it to the Brits: their Cold War spy scandals are in a class of their own. They're not just about espionage but also contain a generous dose of what passed for decadence in that bygone age.

And if you can't get enough of this particular spy scandal, you can read Michael Gillard's obituary of Corbally published in the Guardian last week.