Harry Bulman

"THERE'S NO SECRETS ANY MORE"

- Harry Bulman

Harry Bulman is a main antagonist in the Alex Rider book Crocodile Tears.

Biography
Harry Bulman came from London, was expelled from Eton was sixteen (for smoking) and joined the Army, but was discharged because of cowardice when they found him in a sand dune hiding when he was being attacked. Harry Bulman was so arrogant he got himself promoted.

Harry Bulman lived in East London and he worked for the Media, as a journalist. He said all journalists had a speciality subject; his was politics and the military. Harry Bulman was a perfectionist; he always wore the same blazer, slacks and shirt, and had cuff links in the shape of a dagger, symbolizing his militaristic origins. Harry Bulman was drinking one day at the pub when suddenly one of his friends said he was at the Science Museum, right, when Herod Sayle was doing his presentation about the Stormbreakers, and suddenly a boy  crashed through the museum roof and shot at Sayle. This wouldn't be unusual except it was a boy on the parachute. Bulman's friend swore MI6 had recruited a kid spy and this was their new plan.

Harry Bulman laughed at him, but something said he was being honest. So Bulman pursued the story further, speaking to everyone from Brookland School to the military who had all met Alex since the Science Museum, and he found out everything was right.

Harry Bulman wanted to meet Alex Rider in person, so he got three men to ambush Alex in the cemetery on the way home when he visited his uncle's grave. The three men pretended to be agents of Winston Yu out for revenge, but Alex guessed they were lying, but still took them seriously when they pulled out swords. Alex knocked them all unconscious and fled. But Harry Bulman was seen taking pictures of Alex's fight for the press as Bulman stood behind a mausoleum.

Harry Bulman visited Alex at his Chelsea house just when he and Jack were eating dinner. Harry intrusively entered the house after Jack said Alex didn't know him. Harry pretended to be friendly and drew his card out to prove who he was. But Alex was offended, and rightly so, because the man had just walked right in and was humiliating him in his own house. Harry revealed it was he who had got the men to attack Alex, only making Alex loathe him all the more. Harry seemed to apologize for it but he said he wanted to make Alex, and himself (translation: just himself) very famous.

Harry Bulman said that the law is no military training until sixteen years old. Alex is fourteen, and this breaks the law. Harry said Alex deserves to tell the truth to everyone, to reveal MI6 as scandalous, and Harry promised he'd write a book about Alex. Then he'd turn it into a movie and everyone would give Harry Bulman all their money for fame.

Alex realized Harry was being extremely sick and greedy, and asked him to leave, Harry said he'd be back the next week to talk to him.

Alex realized that if this did happen, everyone would laugh at him and he wouldn't be able to live in London, or even England, again. He said he'd go to MI6 and he did, but they said they wanted him to investigate Reverend Desmond McCain and then they'd deal with Bulman.

The next week, Bulman got up, and felt happy because he'd had a premonition of his possible successful future. Bulman saw a newspaper saying JOURNALIST KILLED outside his flat, and imagined it was one of his idiot friends. Bulman then took the bus but his oyster card wasn't working. It had no money. He walked down to the bank and saw nothing in his card no money at all. He then went to look at his phone but, even though he was in the busiest part of East London, no signal did he get. Odd. He then went to find his car, parked in a garage, but it was gone. He then phoned the police, telling them about a stolen car, but they were deliberately rude and slow with him, treating him like he didn't know his own address. Then, he went, furiously, to a bank. The banker told him that Bulman had closed down his account two years ago and would he like to talk to management? But Bulman had stormed out, roaring in anger.

Bulman then went home, and a commuter threw a paper saying JOURNALIST KILLED at him, he read it, and suddenly saw that he was the journalist in the article. They were saying he was dead! Bulman was scared and angry, and knocked loudly on his own door which had suddenly locked itself shut. His own keys didn't work. Suddenly, a police car came and two officers asked if he was alright, then opened his briefcase and saw a bloody kitchen knife in there. Bulman, who didn't even know what was happening to him now, was arrested and seized, taken to jail.

There, Bulman met John Crawly, official of MI6, who told him that this was all happening because he had threatened Alex Rider. Crawly said this was an official warning, next time he set foot in Chelsea, he would be arrested and eliminated.

Bulman was furious, and extremely bitter. He went home and the next week, his friend who had mentioned Alex in the first place rang him and said a man was willing to pay for information about Alex. Bulman was tempted to tell him to kill himself, but he went ahead anyway, and met the man, Reverend McCain. McCain thanked him for coming and Bulman told him everything he knew about Alex Rider and his MI6 allegiance. McCain then thanked him and said they were an evil generation for recruiting a child. Bulman asked if they could renegotiate the payment because Reverend McCain was rich, and suddenly McCain took a pistol and shot Bulman in the forehead, shutting him up.