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Secret War of Charles Fraser-Smith: The Q Gadget Wizard of World War II
The Secret War of Charles Fraser-Smith, the 'Q' Gadget Wizard of World War II
200 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1981
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 2, 2021
I have not seen the James Bond films, but evidently the supplier of his cool spy gadgets is someone known as “Q.”
“Q” is based on a real person: Charles Fraser-Smith.
Charles started out as a British missionary in Morocco. One day he spoke at a church about his “pioneer missionary work in Morocco and the often unorthodox methods I had used to keep my various projects alive” (p. 22).
Sitting in the audience was the director of the Ministry of Supply, who chatted with Fraser-Smith afterward. The next day the director asked Fraser-Smith to meet him at the ministry headquarters and offered Fraser-Smith a job.
Outwardly, Fraser-Smith was a civil servant of the Ministry of Supply’s Clothing and Textile Department.
In reality, he procured or developed an astonishing numbers of gadgets and supplies for the Special Operations Executive during WWII.
Fraser-Smith and most of the people he dealt with had to sign an Official Secrets Act, requiring thirty years of silence about their wartime activities.
Some time after that thirty years, Fraser-Smith wrote The Secret War of Charles Fraser-Smith, the “Q” Gadget Wizard of World War II along with Gerald McKnight and Sandy Lesberg.
The “Q” designation came from “warships disguised as freighters and unarmed trawlers” during WWI which were known as “Q ships” (p. 10).
Some of what Fraser-Smith supplied were kits to go with soldiers in case they were captured: miniature maps and compasses hidden in hairbrushes, pipes, pens, even dominoes. Sometimes these included a flexible surgical saw with which to try to cut through bars to escape. Fraser-Smith also supplied spies and other soldiers.
He had to take great care that nothing would alert a casual observer—or a sharp-eyed prison guard—to anything that was hidden or unusual. One trick Fraser-Smith often used was to thread a screw-on lid or top in the opposite direction, so if anyone tried to unscrew it in the usual way, he’d actually be tightening it.
Hairbrushes had to be made with bristles native to the country his clients were going to. Sometimes he had to supply uniforms from other countries for men to go undercover. Fraser-Smith had to make sure the fabric was the same type and quality. In one of his first attempts, the manufacturer he used made the uniforms too well and had to redo them.
Sometimes Fraser-Smith came up with ideas himself. Other times, he had to consult with experts and convey what he needed without giving away too much information. And in either case, he had to employ manufacturers to produce what he needed in sufficient quantity. He had to swear many of these folks to the Official Secrets Act. Most of them rose to the challenge admirably. A few dragged their feet, not wanting to vary what they did for their own profit.
One of the most interesting parts to me were miniature cameras which were used to take pictures of the terrain of certain areas. These pictures would be smuggled back to photographic interpreters who would project the height of hills, depth of crevices, etc., so invading soldiers would know the lay of the land exactly.
Another fascinating section told of the S. O. E. employing an illusionist to disguise things, like making a military base look like a working farm.
Fraser-Smith had to come up with various ways to get his supplies to people, particularly POWs. He never used food packages like the Red Cross sent, because he didn’t want to risk those packages being refused if someone found one of his gadgets in them.
Fraser-Smith wrote that he “slightly” knew Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond. But he said Fleming misused one of his ideas of hiding things in golf balls. Fleming’s golf balls would not have performed as golf balls and “wouldn’t have fooled an Irish farmhand let alone the lynx-eyed prison officers and S.S. of the O Flags” (p. 128).
Fraser-Smith also wrote of the “everyday people,” from resistance fighters to sympathetic citizens, who would pass on vital information or supplies at great risk to themselves. “Day after day these men and women continued against the greatest odds with no one present to encourage them. Seldom was it possible to let them know if their arduous and perilous work was successful. Much of it went unrecognized. Those who fought in the services were spurred on by team spirit, e’sprit de corps. The S. O. E. agent and the resistance fighter were alone. This was the highest order of heroism” (pp. 152-153).
I was surprised that some of these tricks would be revealed even after thirty years. Maybe most of them had been discovered by then. I’m sure the types of things that are hidden and disguised now are much different from what they were then.
This was quite a fascinating book.
“Q” is based on a real person: Charles Fraser-Smith.
Charles started out as a British missionary in Morocco. One day he spoke at a church about his “pioneer missionary work in Morocco and the often unorthodox methods I had used to keep my various projects alive” (p. 22).
Sitting in the audience was the director of the Ministry of Supply, who chatted with Fraser-Smith afterward. The next day the director asked Fraser-Smith to meet him at the ministry headquarters and offered Fraser-Smith a job.
Outwardly, Fraser-Smith was a civil servant of the Ministry of Supply’s Clothing and Textile Department.
In reality, he procured or developed an astonishing numbers of gadgets and supplies for the Special Operations Executive during WWII.
Fraser-Smith and most of the people he dealt with had to sign an Official Secrets Act, requiring thirty years of silence about their wartime activities.
Some time after that thirty years, Fraser-Smith wrote The Secret War of Charles Fraser-Smith, the “Q” Gadget Wizard of World War II along with Gerald McKnight and Sandy Lesberg.
The “Q” designation came from “warships disguised as freighters and unarmed trawlers” during WWI which were known as “Q ships” (p. 10).
Some of what Fraser-Smith supplied were kits to go with soldiers in case they were captured: miniature maps and compasses hidden in hairbrushes, pipes, pens, even dominoes. Sometimes these included a flexible surgical saw with which to try to cut through bars to escape. Fraser-Smith also supplied spies and other soldiers.
He had to take great care that nothing would alert a casual observer—or a sharp-eyed prison guard—to anything that was hidden or unusual. One trick Fraser-Smith often used was to thread a screw-on lid or top in the opposite direction, so if anyone tried to unscrew it in the usual way, he’d actually be tightening it.
Hairbrushes had to be made with bristles native to the country his clients were going to. Sometimes he had to supply uniforms from other countries for men to go undercover. Fraser-Smith had to make sure the fabric was the same type and quality. In one of his first attempts, the manufacturer he used made the uniforms too well and had to redo them.
Sometimes Fraser-Smith came up with ideas himself. Other times, he had to consult with experts and convey what he needed without giving away too much information. And in either case, he had to employ manufacturers to produce what he needed in sufficient quantity. He had to swear many of these folks to the Official Secrets Act. Most of them rose to the challenge admirably. A few dragged their feet, not wanting to vary what they did for their own profit.
One of the most interesting parts to me were miniature cameras which were used to take pictures of the terrain of certain areas. These pictures would be smuggled back to photographic interpreters who would project the height of hills, depth of crevices, etc., so invading soldiers would know the lay of the land exactly.
Another fascinating section told of the S. O. E. employing an illusionist to disguise things, like making a military base look like a working farm.
Fraser-Smith had to come up with various ways to get his supplies to people, particularly POWs. He never used food packages like the Red Cross sent, because he didn’t want to risk those packages being refused if someone found one of his gadgets in them.
Fraser-Smith wrote that he “slightly” knew Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond. But he said Fleming misused one of his ideas of hiding things in golf balls. Fleming’s golf balls would not have performed as golf balls and “wouldn’t have fooled an Irish farmhand let alone the lynx-eyed prison officers and S.S. of the O Flags” (p. 128).
Fraser-Smith also wrote of the “everyday people,” from resistance fighters to sympathetic citizens, who would pass on vital information or supplies at great risk to themselves. “Day after day these men and women continued against the greatest odds with no one present to encourage them. Seldom was it possible to let them know if their arduous and perilous work was successful. Much of it went unrecognized. Those who fought in the services were spurred on by team spirit, e’sprit de corps. The S. O. E. agent and the resistance fighter were alone. This was the highest order of heroism” (pp. 152-153).
I was surprised that some of these tricks would be revealed even after thirty years. Maybe most of them had been discovered by then. I’m sure the types of things that are hidden and disguised now are much different from what they were then.
This was quite a fascinating book.
February 7, 2024
As a fan of Ian Flemming's James Bond books/movies, one of the key highlights was always 'Q', the inventor and provider of 007's awe-inspiring gadgets and gizmos that would always get the secret agent out of danger. It stands to reason that the well connected Flemming based this department on a very real operation and this book, released after the 30 year lapse of the official secrets act tells one man's seemingly small yet hugely relevant impact for the war effort in WW2.
The Secret War of Charles Fraser-Smith (1981) is a fascinating first hand account of Fraser-Smith's role as a procurement officer for the British Intelligence, having to come up with ingenious gadgets (or at least bring together experts to concoct useful devices such as compasses in buttons, maps concealed in hollowed-back hair brushes, etc) to help our agents in enemy territory and POW's planning to escape.
The book has eye-opening anecdotes and the author's candid authenticity is both rich and wonderfully frank. He has pride in his work and it's clear, but we won the war and so he has every right to be more than a little proud of his undercover but essential contribution. A fascinating read.
The Secret War of Charles Fraser-Smith (1981) is a fascinating first hand account of Fraser-Smith's role as a procurement officer for the British Intelligence, having to come up with ingenious gadgets (or at least bring together experts to concoct useful devices such as compasses in buttons, maps concealed in hollowed-back hair brushes, etc) to help our agents in enemy territory and POW's planning to escape.
The book has eye-opening anecdotes and the author's candid authenticity is both rich and wonderfully frank. He has pride in his work and it's clear, but we won the war and so he has every right to be more than a little proud of his undercover but essential contribution. A fascinating read.
October 11, 2025
A memoir of the author's time in World War II, sourcing gadgets, gizmos, authentic clothing and new products for the SOE, POWs and downed airmen. After a phone call from a coded person in MI5, MI6, MI8, MI9, SOE, RAF Intennligence and other bodies his reach was wide. Sourcing parts, some of which were really weird - the mushroom cap for a torch which was made in two parts with a coating or radium on the inside (think the glowing bit on watch hands) used for landing lights in France - getting manufacturers to make their product but smaller - Platignum shortened the ink bulb in their pens to make a storage space. A few companies declined to participate which wasn't a wise move - the supplier of cigarettes - as they found to their cost when they were penalisesd for it or trying to make additional profits over the government allowance.
A really interesting book. It must have been exciting as well as a huge challenge.
A really interesting book. It must have been exciting as well as a huge challenge.
June 24, 2021
The author during WWII was in charge of obtaining devices and clothing to aid POW's in escaping, aiding pilots to escape if captured, aiding spies to obtain vital information necessary for the war, and aiding SOE soldiers in completing their highly dangerous missions.
This book is about he obtained those devices, often on very short deadlines, and against great bureaucratic obstacles, while maintaining anonymity within the Ministry of Supply. The book is an easy but fascinating read. I enjoyed it.
This book is about he obtained those devices, often on very short deadlines, and against great bureaucratic obstacles, while maintaining anonymity within the Ministry of Supply. The book is an easy but fascinating read. I enjoyed it.
May 26, 2024
While this is more a collection of anecdotes/memories than the full biography/memoir that I expected, I really enjoyed reading it.
I also appreciated how the author made an effort to recognize the contributions of others more than his own achievements (which were amazing all on their own).
I also appreciated how the author made an effort to recognize the contributions of others more than his own achievements (which were amazing all on their own).
June 24, 2010
Enjoyed book. Not great but enjoyable and not long. Expected more.
Story about facilitator of secret equipment for undercover actions during World-War II. Seems like author was cashing in on story after expiration of secrecy laws (de-classified secrets). Many interesting stories, and anecdotes. However, the writing seemed disconnected.
Story about facilitator of secret equipment for undercover actions during World-War II. Seems like author was cashing in on story after expiration of secrecy laws (de-classified secrets). Many interesting stories, and anecdotes. However, the writing seemed disconnected.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews