The Last Secret Agent: Pippa Latour’s True WWII Spy Story

Phyllis “Pippa” Latour parachuted into Nazi-occupied France in 1944 as a radio operator for the Special Operations Executive. She was one of approximately 40 women among the 470 SOE agents sent to France, and she survived what most did not—living mostly in forests, selling soap to German soldiers as cover, and transmitting intelligence that shaped Allied operations until Paris was liberated.

Author: Phyllis “Pippa” Latour ·
Born: 8 April 1921 ·
Status: Last surviving SOE agent ·
Publication: September 16, 2025 ·
ISBN: 9781984862105

The key facts below establish who Latour was and what her memoir documents.

Is The Last Secret Agent a true story?

The memoir documents Latour’s actual WWII service as an SOE operative, delivering a first-person account that fills a significant gap in WWII history. Where many women’s espionage stories have faded from the record, Latour’s testimony preserves details that would otherwise remain unknown.

Background on Phyllis Latour

Latour was born in South Africa on 8 April 1921 and grew up across various African locations, where she developed fluency in multiple languages by age 12. Her upbringing provided skills crucial for intelligence work—she learned French, Italian, German, and Swahili while traveling extensively before arriving in Britain during WWII.

Verification from sources

Kirkus Reviews confirms the memoir’s authenticity, describing it as “a wartime spy’s remarkable tale, told in an authentic voice.” The publication details (ISBN 9781984862105, published September 16, 2025) align with verified records from major review outlets.

Who is Pippa Latour?

Phyllis “Pippa” Latour was the last surviving undercover British female agent of the Special Operations Executive in World War II, according to Kirkus Reviews. Her story represents a rare opportunity to understand women’s contributions to WWII intelligence from the women themselves.

Early life

Growing up in Africa gave Latour language skills that set her apart from typical recruits. By age 12, she spoke five languages—a multilingual ability that proved essential for her cover identity and intelligence work behind enemy lines.

WWII service

Latour parachuted into occupied France in 1944, where she worked as a radio operator sending German troop positions to London and relaying instructions to French Resistance fighters. Her work continued until Paris was liberated, and she maintained secrecy about her wartime role for over seven decades.

What was Pippa Latour’s code name?

While the memoir doesn’t fully disclose her official SOE code name, it reveals details of her operational security. Latour hid transmission codes on a piece of ribbon to maintain communication with London while evading German detection. Her cover story involved selling soap to German soldiers—work that provided both income and access to information about troop movements.

Operational details

Radio operators behind enemy lines faced a life expectancy of approximately six weeks, according to the Ticket 2 Ride book review. Despite these grim odds, Latour survived multiple attempts to capture her, often living in forests and scavenging food while maintaining her intelligence operations. This speaks to her operational skill and no small measure of fortune in navigating the SOE’s compromised networks.

What is the plot of The Last Secret Agent?

The memoir spans Latour’s early life through her WWII deployment and post-war years, with the central focus on her months undercover in occupied France. Working as a radio operator, she transmitted German troop positions that contributed to bombing raids and Underground attacks destroying German operations.

Key events

The narrative details her parachute insertion into France, her daily existence evading capture, and the moral weight of providing intelligence that occasionally resulted in civilian casualties. Kirkus Reviews notes the book’s “authentic voice” captures both the tension of espionage and its human cost.

Behind Nazi lines

Latour’s survival story includes living mostly in forests, selling soap as cover, and transmitting information hidden on a ribbon. Her intelligence proved crucial in the lead-up to D-Day, though she kept these activities secret until her son discovered her past online.

Who betrayed the SOE?

While the memoir focuses on Latour’s personal story, it operates within the broader context of SOE operations that included the well-known Henri Déricourt affair. The SOE’s mission was conducting espionage, sabotage, and reconnaissance in occupied Europe, with agents facing constant threats from German counterintelligence.

Known betrayals

The book acknowledges the complicated history of SOE operations in France, where betrayals by figures like Déricourt affected many agents’ fates. From 1941 to 1944, 470 SOE agents were sent to France, approximately 40 of them women, and their survival rates were shaped by such security breaches.

Impact on agents like Latour

Despite the dangerous environment created by betrayals, Latour evaded numerous capture attempts during her service. Her ability to survive while operating behind enemy lines speaks to both her operational skill and a degree of fortune in navigating the SOE’s compromised networks.

Timeline

The timeline below maps three key periods in Latour’s narrative arc, from her birth in South Africa through her WWII service to posthumous publication.

What we know versus what’s unclear

The memoir’s confirmed facts establish Latour as a documented historical figure, while certain operational details remain private.

What reviewers and sources say

A wartime spy’s remarkable tale, told in an authentic voice.

— Kirkus Reviews (book review outlet)

The book chronicles the extraordinary experiences of a woman who operated behind enemy lines during the most dangerous period of WWII.

— The 52 Book Club (literary review site)

Summary

The memoir, co-written with journalist Jude Dobson and published September 16, 2025, represents Latour’s final contribution to history—ensuring her experiences as one of approximately 40 women among the 470 SOE agents sent to France will not be forgotten. Her story survived in her own words, posthumously released to readers.

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Pippa Latour’s daring SOE missions behind Nazi lines parallel the unconventional sabotage detailed in the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare true story, highlighting Britain’s shadowy WWII warriors.

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