Lee Pilgrim

Lee Pilgrim is the nom de plume of a seasoned defence and intelligence professional with over 30 years of experience spanning government service and industry roles, including with prime contractors and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs). His career has taken him across the UK and overseas, offering a balanced insider’s view of strategic procurement, operational resilience, and national security challenges. Now based in the private sector, Pilgrim lends his disruptive insights to leading defence publications. He is a regular contributor to the Wavell Room, where his analyses—such as “Restructuring the British Army: A Two-Division Model” (2025), “UK National Resilience” (2025), and “The UK’s F-35 Procurement Strategy: A Balancing Act” (2025)—tackle critical issues in military reform and capability gaps. His work has also appeared in Navy Lookout, Warships IFR and People Matter TV, while he has featured on podcasts like the Warships Pod, dissecting Royal Navy priorities and procurement pitfalls. An opinionated commentator and self-described “political orphan,” Pilgrim engages actively on X as @MtarfaL, fostering debate on everything from airborne early warning failures to fiscal accountability in defence spending. His contributions continue to shape informed discourse on UK defence policy.