Harry Andrews

Harry Andrews (1911 - 1989) was a British actor. As the Soviets try to turn the Iranian Revolution to their purposes, Armstrong again tangles with the same Soviet master spy he failed to catch in Hong Kong. By 1970, in the book Whirlwind, Armstrong is employed as an advisor to the Iranian secret police. Armstrong is ordered back on Special Intelligence duty in 1963, when it is discovered that the KGB has penetrated Hong Kong intelligence, at a very high level. He is as suspicious of the wealthy tai-pans as he is of common criminals.

Armstrong is fiercely pro-British. His lack of children seems to elevate the importance of his work in his life, his work being a sort of substitute legacy. His wife Mary is unable to have children, something Armstrong regrets deeply. He is, however, realistic about other officers doing so, even those under his command.

Though troubled with debt, he never accepts bribes. However, he resigned after a few years, finding this work to have too many grey areas, preferring the clear cut legality of ordinary police work. Because of his skill and intelligence, he was promoted to Special Intelligence, a branch concerned with counter-espionage. He is streetwise but motivated by a somewhat idealized view of police work, taking a simple pleasure in hunting down and arresting the bad guys.

In Noble House, Armstrong serves as a police inspector in Hong Kong. He reappears in the novel Whirlwind. Robert Armstrong is a character in James Clavell's novel Noble House.