MI5 tested Churchill's beloved cigars on MICE to make sure they hadn't been poisoned by Nazi spies

  • Famous for his smoking habit, Churchill often received cigars from well-wisher
  • MI5 thought it was 'too easy' for them to be coated in poison such as cyanide
  • In another instance, they tested a gifted ham on a cat, and the Prime Minster was only allowed to eat it once the feline survived

By Bridie Pearson-jones For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

Winston Churchill's cigars were tested on mice to ensure they hadn't been poisoned by Nazi spies, wartime documents have revealed.

The Prime Minister, famous for his smoking habit, often received cigars from well-wishers while he was fighting the war.

This meant it would be 'too easy' for a cigar to be coated in cyanide or another toxic substance, security services believed.

Winston Churchill's cigars were tested on mice to ensure they hadn't been poisoned by Nazi spies, wartime documents have revealed

Winston Churchill's cigars were tested on mice to ensure they hadn't been poisoned by Nazi spies, wartime documents have revealed

The Prime Minister, famous for his smoking habit, often received cigars from well-wishers while he was fighting the war

The Prime Minister, famous for his smoking habit, often received cigars from well-wishers while he was fighting the war

Victor Rothschild, then the head of MI5's counter-sabotage unit, believed the cigars could have 'tiny explosives' concealed inside them, ready to detonate when Churchill lit up.

Robert Hutton, author of the newly published MI5 account, Agent Jack, told the Express: 'The safest thing would have been to destroy them all.

'But Churchill was very much inclined to consume them, taking, Rothschild noted, "obvious pleasure" from personal danger. 

MI5 even feared an exploding chocolate bar might be among presents posted to Downing Street. 

And when a French army general presented Churchill with a prized Virginia ham, it was given to a staff member's cat to test before the Prime Minster was allowed to eat any. 

Churchill was 'delighted' after he was accosted and gifted the ham while walking across Parliament Square. 

Victor Rothschild, then the head of MI5's counter-sabotage unit, even believed the cigars could have 'tiny explosives' concealed inside them, ready to detonate when Churchill lit up
Churchill, on his was to a paddock, smoking a cigar

Victor Rothschild, then the head of MI5's counter-sabotage unit, even believed the cigars could have 'tiny explosives' concealed inside them, ready to detonate when Churchill lit up

Churchill was often seen in public smoking, here on the campaign trial in his constituency of Woodford the day before the 1955 General Election

Churchill was often seen in public smoking, here on the campaign trial in his constituency of Woodford the day before the 1955 General Election

But it caused 'panic' in his protection squad, Mr Hutton said, as they wanted to test the ham before the leader could realise. 

The then-leading scientific minds in the country decided to feed a slice to a medical researcher's cat.

When the cat survived, Churchill was allowed his breakfast.  

Winston Churchill giving his famous victory sign on an election tour in Glasgow

Winston Churchill giving his famous victory sign on an election tour in Glasgow

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