Preston author believes cousin may have lived secret spy life

At 6ft 10in tall, and with size 19 shoes, William Maxwell Nasmyth Wilcock, better known as Max, was an eccentric character – fluent in at least ten languages, holding a doctorate in law from Cambridge and licensed to fly large aircraft.

But after he died in December 2011, relatives began to wonder whether there was more to him than they had realised.

While Robin’s side of the family knew him as Max, other relatives knew him as Bill, or William – perhaps an early sign of a life lived in more than one world.

Robin received an unexpected call from Fraser and Fraser, a London-based probate research firm featured on the BBC programme Heir Hunters. As Max died without leaving a will and no closer next of kin had come forward, the firm identified Robin as the closest living relative they were able to locate. He was appointed trustee of the estate, leading him to a large collection of passports, documents and personal possessions.

“What they showed me, I just couldn’t believe,” Robin said. “I kept thinking, is this the same person I knew?”

"We thought he might be a spy. The kids were playing with his walking stick one day, and it clicked open. There was a sword inside. I said, 'That's really dangerous!' and Max just lifted his jacket to reveal a gun. That's when I started thinking, this is not a normal guy."

Fourteen years on, after extensive research, Robin believes he has uncovered further clues that support his long-held suspicions.

Among Max’s belongings was a small card which Robin believes indicates he was authorised to carry a firearm, with a branch code he interprets as suggesting links to intelligence services.

"Max was Special Services. He had a licence to kill," Robin said. "That confirmed everything. He had left little trails for the family. 'This is what I did, this is who I was.' That kind of licence isn't something an organisation just hands you – you have to obtain it directly from the government."

His passports, many filled with stamps, show a man who rarely travelled the same route twice, often passing through locations close to American military bases.

“In his first passport in the 1940s, he lists countries that most people in Britain wouldn’t even have heard of at the time,” Robin said. “How did he know about them? It just doesn’t add up.”

Max was photographed inside the Kremlin around 1950 and is said to have known figures connected with the Soviet leadership. He also spent two years in Japan from 1954, based near the American installation in Yokohama, less than a decade after the atomic bomb. Another photograph, taken in Amsterdam, appeared to Robin to point towards involvement in sensitive international situations.

Robin added: “He would swoop into a crisis, Japan, Holland after the floods, Lockerbie; and just get things done.”

Among Max’s possessions were items valued at around £10,000, as well as £13,500 in cash found in a bag when he was taken to hospital. There were also consecutive-numbered $2 bills, which Robin was told are sometimes associated with official American distribution.

Neil Fraser, Partner at Fraser and Fraser, said: “In all our years of probate research, Max’s case stands out as one of the more intriguing cases we have ever encountered.

“Robin’s dedication to uncovering the truth has been extraordinary, and the evidence he has assembled paints a picture of a man who operated at the very highest levels, a life that even now is not fully understood.

“Cases like this remind us that behind every estate, no matter how privately a person lived at the end, there can be an extraordinary story waiting to be told.”

Robin is continuing to pursue several leads. A Fabergé egg is believed to be held in a bank vault in Preston and could potentially be worth tens of millions of pounds. A large property in Argentina known as Tolkien’s Rest, linked to Max’s late wife whose family name was Tolkien, was reportedly sold for millions. Robin believes further significant sums may remain unaccounted for in accounts in America and Argentina.

Robin has now published a book, Was My Cousin a Triple Agent?, fourteen years in the making. The book sets out the evidence he has gathered, including photographs, passports, certificates and correspondence. He also regularly updates a Facebook page named after the book, in the hope that anyone who knew his cousin might come forward with further information.

Robin intends to use any proceeds towards a proper gravestone for Max.

“He was the real James Bond,” Robin said. “I genuinely believe that. And I don’t think I’ll ever know one hundred percent of everything about him, but I’ll keep looking.”