The Umbrella Murder cover art

The Umbrella Murder

The Hunt for the Cold War's Most Notorious Killer

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Umbrella Murder

By: Ulrik Skotte
Narrated by: Justin Avoth
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

London, September 1978: exiled Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov is murdered in broad daylight on Waterloo Bridge with what appears to be a poison-tipped umbrella. It would become the most infamous unsolved killing of the Cold War.

Many years later, young journalist Ulrik Skotte is approached with explosive new information about a man alleged to be responsible for Markov’s death – a spy code-named Piccadilly who worked for the Bulgarian secret service. This meeting launched Skotte into a hunt for the killer lasting more than a quarter of a century, bringing him face to face with eccentric conspiracy theorists, a washed-up former dictator, ageing Danish spooks – and, ultimately, with Agent Piccadilly himself.

Drawing on an incredible cache of original documents, interviews and archive material, The Umbrella Murder provides jaw-dropping answers to questions that have persisted for nearly five decades: who killed Georgi Markov? And who has been protecting the assassin ever since?

©2024 Ulrik Skotte (P)2024 Penguin Audio
Espionage Freedom & Security Murder Cold War
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

Shooting Crows cover art
Murder in the Gulag cover art
When the Clock Broke cover art
Downfall cover art
Kinahan Assassins cover art
Who Will Defend Europe? cover art
Sophie cover art
Dark Wire cover art
Putin and the Return of History cover art
Stakeknife cover art
A Reluctant Spy cover art
Error of Judgement cover art
Agents of Influence cover art
Who Killed Una Lynskey? cover art
Spycraft cover art

What listeners say about The Umbrella Murder

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    16
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    16
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    15
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A gripping tale, perfect narration an insight to the murky world of espionage

An astounding feat of research and dogged determination in the pursuit of truth. A remarkable thriller, all the more so as so many readers will remember the incident and the mystery surrounding the assination of Georgi Markov.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Excellent

Excellent book about a strange murder. I was a kid when it happened - but have always remembered it. It was interesting to know more of the circumstances surrounding it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Totally Gripping

This is an extraordinary story, well told that grips the imagination from the very beginning. Markov's murder stood out amongst the many crimes, committed by both sides, in the cold war, brazen and ruthless yet also mysterious. Bulgaria I know well, and this book captures the atmosphere of a post cold war Sofia, struggling against having to deal with its past. Whatever the equivalent of a page turner is in Audible, this is it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A real story, told as interesting as a novel.

As a Bulgarian I am very interested in knowing the truth about Georgi Markov's murder. It was a common knowledge that the Bulgarian secret service was behind it. However this book gives a lot of detail on the subject.
Very well written and read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Interesting story - bit long

Liked the story but it could’ve been more succinct. And at least it had an end!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!