Post by sparklingblue on Mar 8, 2004 9:49:53 GMT -5
How MI5 shortlists applicants
The Guardian
Martin Wainwright
Monday March 8, 2004
Would-be spies attracted by MI5's decision to raise its numbers by half are being advised that tall is an adjective suited only to their operational fibs and cover-stories.
Anyone over average height is discouraged in official application forms, now going out after the security agency's recent advertising drive, from planning a future as a field agent.
Ignoring the imposing stature of all five actors who have played James Bond, recruiters plan to operate the equivalent of a funfair ride measurement check. Short-listed men are likely to go no further if they top 5ft 11in; women if they stand taller than the 5ft 8in of MI5's current director, Eliza Manningham-Buller.
The warning is part of the ancient spying tradition of "bland is beautiful", based on the theory that the best agents blend as boringly as possible into their surroundings.
In Bond's exotic world, the 6ft-plus of Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan arguably meets this criterion. However, real-life spies spend less time in casinos, luxury hotels and private pools.
The agency advises on its application forms: "You should be able to blend into the background. We are looking for average height, build, appearance.
The limits do not apply to backroom boffins such as Bond's gadget man "Q" or potential Miss Moneypennys, and MI5's Thames-side headquarters has the usual mixture of heights, as well as hairdos, clothes and weights.
Before the current recruiting drive, which aims to increase MI5's 2,100-strong staff by 1,000, appointment panels were informally advised to look for potential agents who would "blend in".
The Guardian
Martin Wainwright
Monday March 8, 2004
Would-be spies attracted by MI5's decision to raise its numbers by half are being advised that tall is an adjective suited only to their operational fibs and cover-stories.
Anyone over average height is discouraged in official application forms, now going out after the security agency's recent advertising drive, from planning a future as a field agent.
Ignoring the imposing stature of all five actors who have played James Bond, recruiters plan to operate the equivalent of a funfair ride measurement check. Short-listed men are likely to go no further if they top 5ft 11in; women if they stand taller than the 5ft 8in of MI5's current director, Eliza Manningham-Buller.
The warning is part of the ancient spying tradition of "bland is beautiful", based on the theory that the best agents blend as boringly as possible into their surroundings.
In Bond's exotic world, the 6ft-plus of Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan arguably meets this criterion. However, real-life spies spend less time in casinos, luxury hotels and private pools.
The agency advises on its application forms: "You should be able to blend into the background. We are looking for average height, build, appearance.
The limits do not apply to backroom boffins such as Bond's gadget man "Q" or potential Miss Moneypennys, and MI5's Thames-side headquarters has the usual mixture of heights, as well as hairdos, clothes and weights.
Before the current recruiting drive, which aims to increase MI5's 2,100-strong staff by 1,000, appointment panels were informally advised to look for potential agents who would "blend in".
