Desmond Harney

United Kingdom |service=MI6 |serviceyears=1954–1979 |alma_mater=Durham University |operation=KenyaIran }} Desmond Edward St Aubyn Harney (14 February 1929 – 10 December 2000) was a British intelligence officer and Conservative Party politician.

A fluent Farsi speaker, Harney was a foreign observer in Iran in the years leading up to the revolution, where he enjoyed intimate access to the inner circle of the Shah, but failed to anticipate his eventual overthrow.

In later life, he entered the world of local politics and served as Mayor of Kensington and Chelsea, though he was thwarted in his ambition to become an MP. Provided by Wikipedia