Listen:
Listen now (15 minutes)
Availability:
Available to listen.
Last broadcast on Tue, 20 Oct 2009, 09:30 on BBC Radio 4.
Synopsis
Matthew Parris marks the passing of the valedictory despatch, the traditional final telegram home in which British ambassadors could let their hair down and settle a few scores. The series features newly declassified Foreign Office files alongside interviews with the diplomats who wrote them.
Matthew delves into the archives to find valedictories in which ambassadors heading into retirement poked fun at foreign nations where they had served.
Broadcast
-
Tue 20 Oct 200909:30
© MMIX~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~02~RS~){kind=small}