The Russian Interpreter

Manning could feel Proctor-Gould’s eyes on him, following his doubts. He continued to look out of the window. Somewhere down there in the haze were the Valdai Hills, and the headwaters of the Dnieper and the Volga. Soon they would be above Latvia and the Gulf of Riga, then the shallow fresh waters of the open Baltic. Down there – the sweet blessing of frontiers, setting some bounds to distrust and corrupt dealing. Up here, no end to them was in sight.

About the Author

Michael Frayn was born in London in 1933 and began his career as a journalist on the Guardian and the Observer. His novels include Headlong, Spies and Skios. He has also published two works of philosophy, Constructions and The Human Touch, and a memoir, My Father’s Fortune. His seventeen plays range from Noises Off, recently chosen as one of the nation’s three favourite plays, to Copenhagen. He is married to the writer Claire Tomalin.

By the Same Author

fiction

THE TIN MEN

TOWARDS THE END OF THE MORNING

A VERY PRIVATE LIFE

SWEET DREAMS

THE TRICK OF IT

A LANDING ON THE SUN

NOW YOU KNOW

HEADLONG

SPIES

SKIOS

 

non-fiction

CONSTRUCTIONS

CELIA’S SECRET: AN INVESTIGATION (with David Burke)

THE HUMAN TOUCH

MY FATHER’S FORTUNE

 

plays

THE TWO OF US

ALPHABETICAL ORDER

DONKEYS’ YEARS

CLOUDS

BALMORAL

MAKE AND BREAK

NOISES OFF

BENEFACTORS

LOOK LOOK

HERE

NOW YOU KNOW

COPENHAGEN

ALARMS & EXCURSIONS

DEMOCRACY

AFTERLIFE

 

films and television

CLOCKWISE

FIRST AND LAST

REMEMBER ME?

 

translations

THE SEAGULL (Chekhov)

UNCLE VANYA (Chekhov)

THREE SISTERS (Chekhov)

THE CHERRY ORCHARD (Chekhov)

THE SNEEZE (Chekhov)

WILD HONEY (Chekhov)

THE FRUITS OF ENLIGHTENMENT (Tolstoy)

EXCHANGE (Trifonov)

NUMBER ONE (Anouilh)

 

collections

COLLECTED COLUMNS

STAGE DIRECTIONS

TRAVELS WITH A TYPEWRITER

MATCHBOX THEATRE: THIRTY SHORT ENTERTAINMENTS

Copyright

First published by Collins in 1966

First published in 2015 by

Faber & Faber Ltd

Bloomsbury House

74–77 Great Russell Street

London WC1B 3DA

All rights reserved

© Michael Frayn, 1966, 2015

Cover design by Faber

Cover image © Culture Club / Getty

The right of Michael Frayn to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with Section 77 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly

ISBN 978–0–571–32988–5