John Cairncross — The Imitation Game Character Profile

About John Cairncross

Cryptographer and Turing's colleague. Uncovered as a Soviet spy by Turing. Threatens to expose Turing's sexuality. MI6 later reveals they already knew and were using him to feed misinformation to the Soviets.

Character Facts

Played by

Allen Leech

Appears in

The Imitation Game (2014)

Role

Supporting

Relationships (2)

• John Cairncross — related — Stewart Menzies (Mark Strong)
• John Cairncross — Conflict Soviet Spy — Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch)

  A trusted colleague secretly leaking British intelligence to the USSR, creating a moral and operational crisis.

Explore the full interactive character relationship map of The Imitation Game

More characters from The Imitation Game

• Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch)
• Joan Clarke (Keira Knightley)
• Hugh Alexander (Matthew Goode)
• Detective Robert Nock (Rory Kinnear)
• Superintendent Smith (Steven Waddington)
• Commander Denniston (Charles Dance)
• Joan's Father (David Charkham)
• Joan's Mother (Victoria Wicks)
• Young Alan Turing (Alex Lawther)
• Helen (Tuppence Middleton)
• Keith Furman (Ilan Goodman)
• Peter Hilton (Matthew Beard)