The new head of British Secret Intelligence (MI6) is of Georgian descent? Blaise Metreweli

Everything I know about Blaise being Georgian and what her background implies

Blaise Metreweli is the first woman appointed as head of MI6, known as the Secret Intelligence Service, reporting to the foreign secretary. Notably, her last name is Georgian. I first learned of her existence when Georgians on Facebook began posting about her—particularly the opposition, who were gleeful that British MI6 would now be led by a fiercely anti-Russian, Georgian. For them, this feeds into their dreams of overthrowing the current government by the West, which they relentlessly (and without evidence) label as pro-Russian.

On X, I found posts saying her name sounded like a Bond villain while others commented on her unusual name. I also found this Times of Israel article by a Georgian-Jewish author that bizarrely tries to tie Metreweli to Jewish circles simply because she’s of Georgian descent (what?!)—positioning her appointment as some symbolic bridge between East and West. The subtext is clear: Israeli elites are carefully tracking who heads MI6 in their second-most critical ally, already spinning her heritage as implicit cover for Anglo-Israeli security coordination, particularly against Iran.

The author’s strained attempts to claim her for "Jewish resonance" are almost comical:

"In Jewish circles, Georgia is also known for its ancient Jewish community, dating back over 2,600 years — one of the oldest continuous Jewish communities in the world. Though there is no indication that Metreweli herself is Georgian-Jewish, her connection to a country with such a storied Jewish history adds symbolic resonance for some."

And later:

"As Britain navigates a complex web of global threats — from Moscow and Tehran to Beijing and digital battlegrounds — Blaise Metreweli will be at the helm, with a rare blend of field experience, tech expertise, and a heritage that bridges East and West."

Constantine Metreweli

There isn’t much information about Blaise online, likely due to her career as a spy. Tracking her down is also slightly complicated because the surname "Metreweli" follows the German spelling of Metreveli. Her father, Constantine Metreweli, was a radiology professor in Hong Kong (during British rule) in the 1980s, where Blaise was raised. He left Hong Kong in 2003. From available articles, we know he trained army personnel in radiology and likely was in the British army, lived in Hong Kong, and walked a trail once used by the British military (later hosted by Oxfam, which sounds strange). He served as head of the Chinese University’s Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Organ Imaging and published numerous scientific papers. Based on available articles and my assumptions (2018 article lists his age as 1975, so 2018-75), he was likely born in 1943.

Cambridge University maintains a "Lost Petreans" page with the note: “We are keen to re-establish contact with ‘Lost’ Petreans. If your name is on the list below and you would like to get back in touch with your old College.” Among those listed is Professor Constantine Metreweli (1962)—Blaise’s father. Given that Blaise also attended Cambridge, this likely makes her a legacy admission, continuing the family’s academic ties to the institution. However, there is doubt if Constantine graduated from Cambridge.

Possible Heritage tied to Artchil Metreweli

The Germanized spelling of "Metreweli" (instead of the Anglicized Metreveli) suggests her family were part of the anti-Soviet émigré wave that fled to Germany. Germany and France were the two destinations emigres went to, sometimes back and forth the two countries. Georgian emigration outside the USSR was virtually nonexistent except in two periods: before Soviet rule and after its collapse. Those who left before the Soviet takeover were overwhelmingly elites—nobles or officials of the First Republic.

The anti-Soviet émigrés are particularly insufferable. Some embraced Nazism (see the Georgian Legion - Original version, or the uncle of Georgia’s former president). Others rejected fascism but remained fanatically anti-communist. And now, we see the ultimate evolution of this legacy: a descendant rising to head the British secret service! Serving Western imperialist powers has always been their natural aspiration.

No wonder Georgia’s opposition—ideological heirs to these émigrés—celebrated her appointment as a victory. To them, it’s poetic justice: one of their own now commands MI6, an institution they fantasize will help them overthrow a government they smears as "pro-Russian" (evidence be damned). Anti-communism continues in the form of anti-Russian. They can’t tell the difference between the two.

A key piece of the puzzle emerges with Artchil Metreweli—a name linked to Gisela Metreweli, a German supercentenarian who was married to a man of that name in Munich before relocating to Berlin. Cross-referencing Georgian sources, a library entry on Artchil Metreweli (lacking birth/death dates) aligns with Gisela’s husband, suggesting this was indeed the same person. It states (Google Translated):

The 2015 edition of the magazine “Georgian Emigration” published an article - “Letters of Grigol Diasamidze to Shalva Amirejib”. The publication is accompanied by a search and comments, where we read about Archil Metreveli: engineer, professor of Georgian language at the University of Munich, translator. Founder of Georgian printing houses in Berlin and Munich. Editor-publisher of the newspaper “Georgiana” (1950-52, Munich), member of the Parisian organization of the Georgian National-Political Center.

From the information provided here, we know for sure only that Archil Metreveli really founded printing houses in Germany. As for his engineering. We have only one small photo with the caption: Engineer Archil Metreveli - representative of the Georgian Merchant Industrialists' Union in Berlin to purchase various goods, to collect industrial information. The photo was published in the magazine - "Theater and Life", 1918, No. 13.

The name of Archil Metreveli as a publisher first appears in Ekvtime Takaishili's 88-page work "Georgian Manuscripts of the National Library of Paris and Twenty Signs of the Georgian Secret Writing System", published in Paris in 1933. In the introduction, the author writes: "I consider it my duty to express my deepest gratitude to my former student Mr. Archil Metreveli, who has borne the expense of this publication and who is fully aware of the urgent need for the publication of such monuments and is ready to carry out even larger and more important publications."

In the same 1933, the magazine “Independent Georgia” wrote: “The book “Wisdom-Lie” by Sulkhan-Saba Orbeliani, translated by Mikheil Tsereteli, has been published in German, published by Archil Metreveli. The book is preceded by a biography of Sulkhan-Saba Orbeliani compiled by Mikheil Tsereteli and an extensive historical and literary discussion by Zurab Avalishvili, printed on good paper and very beautifully. It is accompanied by a beautiful picture of the author and a title decorated with Georgian ornaments. Mr. Metreveli intends to publish in German also The Knight in the Tiger’s Skin, The Life of Kartli, The Geography of Georgia under Vakhushti and others.”

“White George” also responded to the book “Wisdom-Lie.”

This book is the first in Archil Metreveli’s publishing activities. The book is titled “Berlin-Willensdorf” and was intended as the beginning of the “Georgian Library” series. A prospectus was also printed with a list of future publications, but the project failed to materialize. We learn the reason for this from a letter sent to Mose Shanidze in America in 1938. Archil Metreveli writes that he had deceived the publishing company and was now awaiting a court decision: “As you can see in the prospectus, we had good intentions, but, unfortunately, everything had to be stopped. If I had received my money, we would have continued the work.”

After the publication of the aforementioned series was canceled, it seems that Archil Metreveli began working in the editorial office of the newspaper “New Georgia” founded in Paris by Grigol Veshapeli, as we see him among the editorial staff in the photo in the first issue of 1935.

Until the 1940s, the name of Archil Metreveli as a publisher is no longer found. Only during and after World War II were many important publications printed in his printing house.

In 1942-45, the Georgian newspaper “Georgia” was published in Germany, which introduced us to the life of the Georgian Legion. A total of 138 issues were published (the last on March 12, 1945). The newspaper, along with the magazine “Kartveli Erisa” and other literature intended for legionnaires, was printed in Berlin, in Archil Metreveli’s Georgian printing house. The photographs printed in the 100th issue of the newspaper "Georgia" show the facade of the printing house with Georgian-German inscriptions and the interior.

On the instructions of the Georgian Union Headquarters, Archil Metreveli compiled a German-Georgian and Georgian-German dictionary for soldiers, which was used not only by Georgians, whom G. Maghalashvili sent to German language courses, but also by Germans.

In 1943, D. Kheladze published a miniature "pocket" "The Knight in the Panther's Skin" in Georgian for legionnaires in the printing house of Archil Metreveli in Berlin. In 1943, this printing house also printed 3 books of the "Georgian Legion Field Library": "Our Songs" (Legionnaires' Works), "Writings" by Simoniko Berezhiani and "Bashiachuk" by Akaki Tsereteli.

In 1944, the literary and scientific journal “Georgia” was published, as well as the collection “Georgian Poets” (from Al. Chaechavadze to Al. Abashela) compiled by Archil Metreveli, and others.

On May 26, 1944, the headquarters organized a concert in Berlin. A two-part concert was held. The concert was organized by V. Maghradze. Both emigrants and prisoners of war participated in the concert. The concert program was printed in Georgian and German at Archil Metreveli’s Georgian printing house.

In the biography of doctor and journalist Givi Kobakhidze, we read that in 1947-1949 he worked at the University of Munich with Archil Metreveli, a professor of Georgian language.

In 1957-1958, politician David Saghirashvili and Archil Metreveli jointly published the newspaper "For the Liberation of the Fatherland" in Munich.

Source:

1. Search and comments // Georgian emigration / Gr. Robakidze University Georgian Emigration History and Geography Scientific Research Institute-Tbilisi, 2015.-N3 (6).-p.145

2. Engineer Archil Metreveli: Georgian. Representative of the Union of Merchants and Industrialists in Berlin...[Portrait] // Theater and Life. - 1918. - N13. - p.8

Daushvili, Rusudan. Georgian military units and organizations in Germany // 8 episodes from the history of Georgian-German relations / Rusudan Daushvili. - Tbilisi, 2014. - p.72-107

Daushvili, Rusudan. Emigrant printing houses, editions and publishers // Georgian emigration in 1921-1939 / Rusudan Daushvili. - Tbilisi, 2007. - ISBN 978-9940-49-19-6. - p. 177-179.

So what we can summarize is that this Artchil Metreweli was a figure in the Georgian Nazi collaborationist diaspora, blending cultural preservation with political activism. His work reveals the dual role of interwar/WWII émigrés: promoting Georgian heritage while aiding Axis-aligned causes. The printing house’s legacy shows how exile networks transitioned from wartime propaganda to Cold War anti-communism.

If this Artchil Metreweli is the same as Gisela’s husband then he died in 1967. The evidence suggests that Blaise Metreweli’s family—likely tied to Artchil Metreveli, the Georgian Nazi-era publisher and émigré activist—belongs to the anti-Soviet, reactionary diaspora that aligned itself with Western (and, in some cases Axis) power. If Constantine Metreweli (Blaise’s father) was indeed part of this lineage, her trajectory—raised in colonial Hong Kong, educated at Cambridge, and ascending to lead MI6—reflects a continuation of this exile tradition: serving Western imperialism with fervor.

Another Finding

A curious detail emerges from UK naturalization records: in July 1966, one "Dobrowolski Constantino (known as Constantine Metreweli)"—listed as a medical student of uncertain nationality—was registered at a London address.

This dual-identity revelation complicates the family's backstory, suggesting Blaise's father may have been either a mixed Georgian-Slavic émigré (the Polish-derived "Dobrowolski" hinting at possible Warsaw Pact roots) or part of that nebulous class of stateless Cold War operatives who strategically shed identities. Yet regardless of whether Constantine was a Georgian exile proper or a child of a Georgian exile or the product of intersecting anti-Soviet diasporas, the fundamental trajectory holds: the Metreweli family's Germanized surname, British colonial affiliations (Hong Kong), and deep integration into Western institutions collectively trace the arc of a classic Eastern Bloc defector lineage. The 1966 naturalization date—peak Cold War—speaks volumes, coinciding with the rise of new exile alliances with NATO intelligence apparatuses.

Blaise

Interestingly, she studied anthropology—a field historically linked to intelligence work, whether as cover for spies or as a means of deeply understanding (and potentially manipulating) societies especially if spying is the only job she’s ever wanted, as she claims in an interview about women spies.

Blaise acknowledges this, though the exact phrasing of her remarks would be telling.

“I started life as an MI6 agent runner and spent most of my career overseas and joined MI5 to do this job,” she said. Before that, she had studied anthropology because she was “really fascinated by human behaviour and how and why people act”. Anthropology, she explained, “is really useful for this job because it isn’t really about states doing this to each other. It is individuals who do this”.

In an FT interview with women spies, Blaise states:

During her agent-running days Ada (now Q) would explicitly build familial associations. “It changes things. You can literally see it change in an agent’s eye. I will do it very openly, by saying, ‘I feel like I’m your sister’. ‘I can imagine you being my brother.’ ‘I really respect you as my father.’ You literally bring that terminology in”… Her strength is operational expertise honed on a series of overseas postings, where she learnt Arabic and ran agents, including in war zones.

In a 2021 interview titled “Meet ‘Director K’, the MI5 spy responsible for keeping Britain safe from China and Russia,” she came across as surprisingly nuanced for her position, avoiding cartoonish rhetoric. But after the 2022 Russian invasion, the West’s discourse spiraled into hyperbole, making it harder to gauge how she’d frame her views today. That said, her anthropology background and multilingual, multicultural upbringing likely contribute to her more sophisticated delivery—using calibrated language to advance the same agenda.

She describes Russia and China as threats, but in 2021, her phrasing was notably greyer, framing concerns around “Russian activity” rather than Russia itself—a rhetorical tilt toward containment rather than outright demonization. But that era of relative subtlety is long over.

Her primary focus, even then, was blocking British business deals with China, which she labeled a “chronic” threat. What’s truly staggering is this admission:

“It is often not about stopping it but managing it, because ultimately the UK needs investment. Stopping all of this doesn’t help us, it cuts us off. This is about finding the balance… But where we see individual companies or sectors being targeted we will focus our efforts there.”

"Pressed on what industries and sectors need to be protected, she said: “Where there is a national security threat from foreign investment, that is where we focus our interest. MI5 is able to focus on the harder end of the threat. MI5 should not be - and isn’t - the economic policeman of the UK.”

So Keir Starmer has appointed a more sophisticated and worldly operative -an anti-Soviet émigrée whose family has long been committed to British interests, while conveniently scoring points for appointing the first woman. It’s a smart move on his part.

The real question remains: if the UK pushes for deeper confrontation, will she escalate or resist? Given her record - and her family's ideological legacy - bet on the former.

Give me information about Blaise if you have it!! Correct me if I have written anything incorrectly!