Main content

Ex-spy Willie Carlin: I was living on adrenaline

Former MI5 operative Willie Carlin was an undercover spy within Sinn Fein, the political wing of the IRA, during the height of the Troubles.

He was dramatically extracted in 1985 after his cover was blown.

Asked what it was like working undercover he told Â鶹ԼÅÄ Hardtalk’s Stephen Sackur: “I was living on adrenaline. It is the greatest drug ever...

“You know there is nothing greater than thinking you are going to get shot and then you get into bed
and think 'I'm not shot'."

Release date:

Duration:

3 minutes

This clip is from