NINE

July-November 1970

After a desperate rush, the Bad Science book was hurried out in hardback just days before the General Election in June. The publishers, the editor and I were attacked in many newspaper leader articles for trying to influence the outcome of the election by publishing a book critical of the Wilson Government so close to polling day.

I appeared on several late-night chat shows to answer the criticisms. On The Passing Parade, noted BBC3 broadcaster Alex MacIntosh demanded to know what right I had to play god with the fate of the election, to which I replied he was talking rubbish. For once in his career MacIntosh was rendered speechless, giving me a chance to explain further.

'Look, Harold Wilson called the election for June 18 long after the publication date for Bad Science was announced. You can hardly blame me, my editor, or my publisher if the Prime Minister has a poor sense of timing,' I said, trying not to perspire under the blazing studio lights.

'Ah, but here you are now criticizing the PM for his poor sense of timing - you're at it again!' MacIntosh said triumphantly.

'Look, Alex, the people of Britain are perfectly capable of making their own minds up about who should run the country. I don't support any particular political party or philosophy, as you well know. But Harold Wilson has cast himself as the architect of the white heat of technology. My book shows that so-called white heat is about as effective as a single-bar heater in the Antarctic!'

After that the programme degenerated into a shouting match, during which I gave as good as I got. The producer of the show was an expatriate Kiwi, Vincent Mortimer, whom I knew vaguely from the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation. A red-haired dynamo, he had quickly risen through the ranks of the fledgling television service in New Zealand and was now making a name for himself with the new channel, BBC3. I had profiled him for a paper once in Auckland and was delighted to meet him again. He took me for a drink in the bar after the show and congratulated me on the success of my book.

'You ever thought of getting into television? I thought you handled Alex really well, and it's not often that someone comes out ahead on points against him! We're desperate for good journos on BBC3; the old fogeys who run the main channels won't give us a sniff of anybody decent - we only got MacIntosh because he's a sanctimonious prick they couldn't wait to get shot of,' he complained.

'I would have thought my Kiwi accent would dissuade you - hardly the Queen's English,' I replied.

'No, we're ditching all that plum in the mouth crap. BBC3 - we're the Voice of the People!' Vincent joked. I declined the chance of going into television. I was only just carving out a niche as a freelance writer, and did not feel sufficiently confident in my current career to launch myself into another. Vincent gave me his business card anyway, scrawling his home number on the back.

'Look, if you get anything you think I might be interested in, give us a call, OK?' he asked. 'Ring anytime, day or night - I hardly get any sleep so you won't be disturbing me.'

Three days later the Tories led by Ted Heath were returned to power for the first time in seven years with a majority of 43. Henry immediately had all remaining copies of Bad Science stickered to read the book that brought down a government!, which even I thought was overstating the case a tad. But the first hardback edition sold out within weeks and I made sure never to criticize one of Henry's publishing decisions again.

For me it was time to get back to work writing my Kennedy book. The publicity generated by Bad Science had eaten up several valuable weeks of my writing schedule and it was going to be a push to meet my deadline. For once my UNIT log was standing idle, with few if any entries being added for several months. As soon as I handed in my Kennedy manuscript it would be time to restart my investigation of the covert intelligence taskforce.

* * *

Four months later and my second book was complete. The handsome royalty cheque I received for Bad Science from Henry in September had swollen my bank account considerably and given me the financial freedom to pursue my investigation into UNIT and Doctor John Smith for at least six months.

My first calls were to the long list of contacts I had built up within various Government agencies over the years. Having been out of circulation for several months there was a lot of catching up to do and a few well-placed bottles of expensive alcohol and perfume helped smooth the wheels considerably. Of particular interest was a piece of information I picked up from a friend within the Ministry of Science about a new initiative against crime.

'It's a joint effort between the Justice Department, the Government, and the Prison Service,' confided Martha, a highly placed secretary-cum-personal assistant to the Minister. She knew more about the workings of the ministry than her boss. 'Apparently some Swiss scientist has come up with a revolutionary new technique to remove violent impulses from the minds of criminals. There's going to be a demonstration at one of Her Majesty's prisons next week.'