efore she became the most infamous “female spy” of World War I, Mata Hari was a Dutch dancer who turned her heartbreak and reinvention into performance art. Celebrated across Belle Époque Europe for her seductive “Eastern” dances, she embodied every fantasy — and every fear — men had about powerful women.

When war broke out, that fantasy turned fatal. Accused of being a double agent, Mata Hari was tried, convicted, and executed for espionage — though the evidence was almost entirely fabricated.

In this episode, we unravel how a woman who blurred the line between performance and identity became the perfect scapegoat for France’s paranoia. Was she a master spy, a myth, or just a woman ahead of her time?

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“‘Mata Hari’ alias McLeod Margaretha Geertruida (Marguerite Gertrude): Executed by the French in 1917 for Accusations of Spying for Germany, KV 2/1, 1914–1924.” The National Archives (UK), https://cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/filesonfilm/mata-hari-alias-mcleod-margaretha-geertruida-marguerite-gertrude-kv-2-1.pdf. Accessed 2 Nov. 2025.

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