george smiley is my secret sharer, my companion. smiley moderates me as a writer. >> kroft: the character, played by alec guinness in this bbc version, is about as close as le carreÉ gets to a hero. at best, middle-aged, a hapless cuckold, he is measured, sensible, clever, and devoted to his job. what do you like best about smiley? >> le carré: i think how he toughs it out. >> kroft: survivor. >> le carré: more than that. he does a good job. >> tidy up! >> le carré: and much of it is distasteful to him. but he has a sense of duty. and he has a sense of moral obligation and a sense of balance. >> george, you won! >> le carré: he's made a lot of compromises with life. >> did i? yes, yes, i suppose i did. >> le carré: and it's actually his greatest operational weapon, is his humanity. >> kroft: it been nearly 30 years since smiley and his old circus performers have appeared in a le carreÉ novel, but some f them are back for the new one: "a legacy of spies," and unceremoniously called to account at the gleaming new mi-6 headquarters, fo