Mikhail Lyubimov: biography, first wife, photo

The biography of this man is fascinating and fascinating, and even similar to an adventure novel. Mikhail Lyubimov is a scout, writer and publicist, candidate of historical sciences and is now quite an old man. He has already hit eight dozen, and he is still the same ironic and dangerously charming, the third time married and having three grandchildren and a granddaughter a man. He has one son - Alexander Lyubimov - a journalist and a very famous person on television.

Charm of the old scout

His name is "legend", and he calls himself "anecdote of intelligence". He is a great esthete, adoring tweed jackets. He is very well-read, and for every occasion of life the most exquisite quotations come out of his lips. Mikhail Lyubimov gave his own definition of intelligence, calling it "paid form of pleasure," and created a new domestic genre - a parody of espionage. He has no contacts with people from the authorities, but few believe it.

Mikhail Petrovich Lyubimov: Biography

He was born in Dnepropetrovsk on May 27, 1934 in the family of an employee of the OGPU and the head of SMERSH Lyubimov Petr Fedorovich. His mother was the daughter of a professor of medicine. He graduated from high school in Kuibyshev with a gold medal. Then he entered MGIMO University and after graduating in 1958 began his career as a consular secretary of the USSR Embassy in Helsinki. A year later, he already worked in the intelligence service under the First Main Directorate of the KGB of the USSR.

Mikhail Lyubimov, a scout who very well imitated a diplomat sympathetic to the West, was a frequent visitor to social events and London salons, where he often came with his beautiful wife, actress, Ekaterina Vishnevskaya. He had very warm and friendly relations with major British politicians, public and cultural figures.

Reviews

London friends called him "Smiling Mike" (he was loved in such a role). However, active reconnaissance activity brought its useful benefits to the USSR. In 1965, he was expelled from England and declared persona non grata.

Very interesting about him responded to a well-known English newspaper, which described Lyubimov as an unusually charming man in a striped suit, sewn on Savile Road, sometimes wearing an Eton tie. However, this seemingly friendly Russian was one of the most motivated and talented employees of the KGB, who led the whole anti-British espionage on the Lubyanka.

For two years, Mikhail Lyubimov worked in Denmark as deputy resident and first secretary of the embassy. In 1974 he was appointed deputy head of the third department of the PGU KGB.

Since 1976, Mikhail Petrovich is an adviser to the embassy in Denmark. Upon his return to his homeland in 1980, he became the chief of one of the divisions of the KGB apparatus.

Literary Creativity

After a while, he retires and begins to study literature and journalism. In the 80's, his two plays were staged. Since 1987, he has been cooperating with the publications "Top Secret" and "Detective and Politics", as a publicist - in the magazine "Ogonyok."

True fame brought him the novel "The Life and Adventures of Alex Wilkie." He narrates about the life of illegal immigrants abroad.

In 1995, he wrote a memoir novel "Notes of a Negligent Resident." In the same year, his article entitled "Operation Golgotha", which seriously disturbed the public, was published. He described how in the plan of perestroika there were tasks to plunge the country into the chaos of wild capitalism, then to show the advantages of the socialist system, and thereby, thanks to the indignation of the masses, to return to the former state system. It turned out very prophetically. Deputies of the State Duma took all for "pure coin" and even wrote a letter to the special services.

Books

In 1996, a collection of short stories "Spies I Love and Hate", a collection "A Guide to the KGB on the World's Cities" and a satirical novel "The Decameron of Spies" (1998).

In 2001, Lyubimov published the book "Walking with the Cheshire Cat", where he compares the English and Russian. In 2012 there was a continuation of the adventures of spy Alex Wilkie called "Shot". Here are described episodes that were autobiographical in relation to Lyubimov. The protagonist is a "rat", which was planted inside the Russian intelligence service. This man, to the smallest detail, the writer took from the Soviet defector Oleg Gordievsky. For many years he was a deputy to M. Lyubimov and worked for the UK intelligence.

Love-match

Being the son of a hereditary Chekist, he fell in love with a hereditary noblewoman - Ekaterina Vishnevskaya, who became his first wife. She fascinated him as a young and beautiful actress, distinguished for her sparkling humor, magnificent erudition and a bright independent temper. They were married in the 60th year, and in 1961 they left for London. The son was born in the summer of 1962 and by birthplace is an Englishman.

The noblemen of Vishnevskie

Especially it is worth dwelling on the pedigree of the wife of Mikhail Petrovich - Catherine Vishnevskaya. The writer even wrote a book about this "Wandering around the pedigrees." His wife was from a wealthy noble family, about whom Leskov wrote the story ("Epic about Vishnevsky and his relatives"). In the encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron, half a page is devoted to Vishnevsky. There is described a curious episode when one of the relatives of Vishnevsky, passing one village, was once struck by the wonderful voice of the singing Cossack Alexei Rozuma in the church choir. Then he took the chorister with him to Petersburg, and then put him in the court chorus. So the favorite of Empress Catherine II Alexei Razumovsky got to the capital.

The Vishnevsky family was related to the Trubetskoi, Dolgoruky and even some royal families.

With a healthy irony, we can say that Lyubimov's Vishnevsky would not even be allowed into the hallway.

Conclusion

Mikhail Petrovich Lyubimov does not idealize intelligence, his heroes are not "hard-faced stirlitzes." They are more presented in a fascinating ironic and humorous way. Now he speaks a lot on television and radio, lectures in Russia and abroad. In his spare time he visits theaters, art galleries, loves tourism and walks, as well as swimming. She loves to be with her family and drink Scotch whiskey. A huge black cat (this is his favorite pet, which helps him to relieve stress) became the hero of his latest book.

Now Mikhail Lyubimov lives and works in Moscow.