Government minister Esther McVey has become a lightening rod for anger about benefit cuts and welfare reform. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions knows all about financial struggle, starting out in life as a foster child. Mark Coles finds out how the former presenter has gone from a breakfast TV sofa to the front benches of the House of Commons. In a rare interview, Esther’s father Jim tells us why he decided to put his daughter into care, and how he helped kick-start her on-screen care...
Oct 20, 2018•14 min
British blogger Eliot Higgins and his investigative website Bellingcat have been making headlines around the world this week with claims that they’ve uncovered the true identities of two Russian men suspected of carrying out a nerve agent attack in Salisbury. Not tourists as the Kremlin maintains – but highly decorated members of Russia’s military intelligence service, the GRU. Higgins – isn’t your typical journalist. A former video gamer, in the past he’s worked for a bank, an oil rig company e...
Oct 13, 2018•14 min
As the new series of Dr Who launches, Mark Coles profiles the life of new Dr Who script writer and distinguished children's author Malorie Blackman. The former Children's Laureate has been called a “phenomenal author and a childhood hero” by rapper Stormzy and name checked on Tiny Tempah's hit Written In The Stars. She has written over 60 books for children and young adults, plays the drums, speaks several languages and apparently Klingon. Producers: Diane Richardson, Smita Patel and Jade Thomps...
Oct 06, 2018•14 min
“One of the greatest comebacks in sporting history”. That’s how US journalists reacted to golfer Tiger Woods winning the PGA Tour Championship in Atlanta last weekend. Having struggled with injury and the fall-out from marital infidelity, Woods hadn’t won for five years. Many thought he was finished. This weekend, as the comeback kid joins the US Ryder Cup team in Paris, Mark Coles looks back on Tiger Woods’ life and career. We hear from former friends and associates, his first ever golf coach a...
Sep 29, 2018•14 min
BBC TV’s ‘Killing Eve’ is all the rage this week - a new drama about an MI5 officer trying to catch a Russian assassin which has earned near unanimous rave reviews . On Profile, Mark Coles examines the life of the show’s creator – the actor and writer Phoebe Waller-Bridge. From childhood poetry about frogs to mooning on stage and ‘Fleabag’ - her award winning TV show about a sex obsessed singleton, we find out why Waller-Bridge seems determined to shock her audience. We hear from her close frien...
Sep 22, 2018•14 min
America is bitterly divided. Should conservative Judge Brett Kavanaugh be given a seat on the US Supreme Court ? Opponents fear his appointment - if confirmed later this month - will shift the country's most powerful legislative body further right and turn the clock back on decades of civil and human rights reforms. Others argue he's only been nominated by President Trump to ensure he can't be prosecuted for any perceived wrongdoing in the Russia collusion investigation. Nonsense, say his suppor...
Sep 15, 2018•14 min
As political rebrands go, it's an unlikely one - say his critics. The shadow Chancellor, John McDonnell - former hard man of the left this week playing peacemaker in a row between Jewish groups and Labour over the party's stance on anti-Semitism. On Profile this week, Mark Coles goes in search of the real John McDonnell. A journey which takes us from his working class Liverpudlian roots, his time fighting Thatcher at the GLC and into parliament where his hard left politics reviled New Labour and...
Sep 08, 2018•14 min
It's been a long time coming. A sticker on the cover of Jamaican born writer Victor Headley's 1992 novel 'Yardie' said "soon to be made into a major movie". A quarter of a century on, it finally has. Directed by British actor Idris Elba, the film - about violent Jamaican drug gangs operating in London in the 1980s - opens this weekend. On Profile this week, Mark Coles finds out more about the man who wrote the original story. Described by a friend, as an 'enigma wrapped in a mystery'. We hear fr...
Sep 01, 2018•14 min
In 2014, one of the oldest financial institutions in the City of London, Lloyd's, appointed its first ever female chief executive, Inga Beale. Next year, she will step down from the role. A champion for diversity in the workplace, Beale has overseen big cultural and technological changes at the insurance market - some controversial. A drinking ban for Lloyd's employees during working hours made the headlines in 2017, as did a loosening of the famously conservative dress code. She has faced other...
Jul 28, 2018•14 min
The vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and YouTube star Jacob Collier has some very famous fans. Music industry titan Quincy Jones described him as an absolute genius and asked to work with him. But Jacob declined his invitation and suggested instead if they could just be friends. He wanted to make his first album on his own terms. The gamble paid off as he went on to win two Grammy awards. And now, at just 23 years old, he is performing his own Prom at the Royal Albert Hall. Presenter: Mark Coles ...
Jul 21, 2018•14 min
Dominic Raab has been thrust into the key government role of Brexit secretary following the resignation David Davis. The 44-year-old was tipped for high office from the moment he was elected to the safe Conservative seat of Esher and Walton in 2010. His rise through the ministerial ranks has not been without controversy, with Theresa May accusing him of fuelling gender warfare by describing some feminists as "obnoxious bigots". With just months to go to broker a deal with EU negotiators, not to ...
Jul 14, 2018•14 min
Since Matteo Salvini was sworn in as Italy's Interior Minister, his controversial stance on immigration, Roma people and the European Union has made the headlines. The press have dubbed him the European Donald Trump and commentators say he could pose a threat to the existence of the European Union as we know it. This week he was in the news again, for refusing to allow another migrant rescue ship to dock in Italy and for his radical proposals to crack down on migration. But his perfect day would...
Jun 30, 2018•14 min
Labelled 'the rebel who forgot to rebel', who is Dominic Grieve? Some political commentators thought the Conservative MP, and former Attorney General, could inflict a significant parliamentary defeat on the government. He wanted the Commons to have more of a say over the final outcome of Brexit negotiations. But he called off his own rebellion on Wednesday. Grieve was called the modern day grand old Duke of York - accused of marching the troops to the top of the hill, only to march them down aga...
Jun 23, 2018•14 min
Footballer Gareth Southgate's career has been haunted by a decisive penalty he missed against Germany in the semi-final of Euro '96. Even when he went on honeymoon to Bali a Buddhist monk reminded him of that miss. Now he has a chance to make amends - this time as England manager at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. His path to the top job has not followed the conventional route, being sacked from his only other management role. But commentators say he has the attributes of a great leader. Presenter...
Jun 16, 2018•14 min
Characterised as both a benevolent philanthropist and as a meddling influence, George Soros has been present at some of the most defining moments in modern history. Soros was born into a Hungarian Jewish family, and later took on a false identity to survive the Nazi occupation in 1944. It was an experience that shaped his life and his outlook and he went on to escape to the West via his knowledge of the international language Esperanto. Beginning his career as a tobacco salesman, Soros went on t...
Jun 09, 2018•14 min
The leader of Sinn Féin, Mary Lou McDonald has been a face of the campaign to scrap a ban on abortions. In a referendum, voters in the Republic of Ireland voted overwhelmingly to overturn the abortion ban. The campaign also increased the profile of Ms McDonald who took over as the leader of Sinn Féin in February. Her personal story is very different from other leading Sinn Féin politicians. Growing up in a middle class suburb of Dublin - a world away from the tough areas of Northern Ireland most...
Jun 02, 2018•14 min
Few Italians had heard of Giuseppe Conte when they found out he would most probably become their new prime minister. President Sergio Mattarella approved his nomination as prime minister after a deadlock which had seen Italy without a government for 11 weeks. The surprise candidate is a law professor in Florence and has no political experience. Even people close to him said he had never mentioned politics. In the first few days of new-found fame he was accused of embellishing his CV, which he de...
May 26, 2018•14 min
You may know him as Childish Gambino, the creator of viral video hit 'This is America' or as the Emmy award winning actor and director of comedy drama Atlanta. Mark Coles profiles Donald Glover, the multi-talented American comedian, record producer, songwriter, rapper and DJ who is forcing the world to confront racism, violence and societies contradictions. Presenter: Mark Coles Producers: Estelle Doyle and Diane Richardson Editor: Emma Rippon.
May 19, 2018•14 min
Donald Trump's choice for CIA director, Gina Haspel. Mark Coles profiles the controversial figure whose nomination has forced her out of the shadows to face difficult questions. Gina Haspel describes herself as a typical middle-class American but the testimony of former colleagues reveals a skilled intelligence operative with an empirical mind, a taste for adventure and a talent for infiltrating terrorist cells. At her confirmation hearing this week she was commended as an intelligence professio...
May 12, 2018•14 min
Born in Rochdale to Pakistani parents, the new Home Secretary Sajid Javid had a modest start in life. His father worked as a bus driver before moving to Bristol to open a women's clothes shop - the family of seven squeezing into a two-bed flat above it. Despite these humble beginnings, Javid quickly achieved success, wealth and power. After studying at Exeter University, where he gained a reputation as a committed Thatcherite, he became an investment banker and a multi-millionaire. Javid then mo...
May 05, 2018•14 min
Tottenham MP David Lammy has been leading the parliamentary charge for the Windrush generation as they fight for their residency rights. Mark Coles charts the life and career of one of parliament's most formidable campaigners. Born in North London to Guyanese parents, Lammy grew up in Tottenham but moved to Peterborough aged 11 after winning a council scholarship to the city's cathedral boarding school. He went on to study law in London and at Harvard. Then, after a brief spell as a barrister, h...
Apr 28, 2018•14 min
Mark Coles profiles Pulitzer Prize winning rapper Kendrick Lamar, whose concepts and ideas are changing hip-hop culture. Lamar won the award for his latest album Damn, which also collected five Grammy awards in January and is praised for lyrics which reveal the complexity of modern African-American life. Growing up in the deprived city of Compton, California, Lamar credits his father with keeping him on the right path and providing the balance that some of his peers were missing. His album good ...
Apr 21, 2018•14 min
Karen Pierce is the UK's new Permanent Representative at the UN in New York, Britain's most senior ambassadorial post. She only started in the role three weeks ago and has been thrown in at the deep end with the chemical weapons attack in Syria. Friends and colleagues alike are struck by her glamorous and colourful sense of style. This includes high heels, to the dismay of her security detail in places like Afghanistan, who fear her footwear could impede a swift exit. We hear how she tackles mee...
Apr 14, 2018•14 min
Daniel Ek, co-founder and CEO of music streaming service Spotify. Mark Coles tracks the life of the shy Swede transforming the music industry. This week 35-year-old Daniel Ek became very, very rich when his company Spotify floated on the New York Stock Exchange - with an initial value of more than $26 billion. It's a long way from his home in a working-class suburb of Stockholm where Daniel's interest in both music and computers was piqued at an early age. He started his first businesses while a...
Apr 07, 2018•14 min
Taking on Trump, horse trials and dancing dogs. Presenter Mark Coles explores the life of Stormy Daniels, the award winning adult film actress who's revolutionising the porn industry and has previously considered a career in politics. Presenter Mark Coles Producers: Jordan Dunbar and Diane Richardson.
Mar 31, 2018•14 min
Nigel Oakes was a pioneer of 'behaviour dynamics', the art of influencing people. He set up a successful company, Strategic Communications Limited, which boasts clients from NATO to the UK government. But now he finds himself caught up in the Cambridge Analytica scandal. He was born in 1962 into a world of privilege. Schooled at Eton, his father was a Major in the Irish Guards and once captained the British Ski Team at the Winter Olympics. Once Nigel hit London he began a music career even relea...
Mar 24, 2018•14 min
As RT's editor-in-chief, Margarita Simonyan runs a news network described by US intelligence as "the Kremlin's principal international propaganda outlet". Formerly known as Russia Today, RT risks being stripped of its UK broadcast licence in the wake of the Salisbury spy poisoning. So who is the woman at its helm? Born into an Armenian family in Krasnodar in Southern Russia, Simonyan grew up in poverty, but her academic achievements helped her win a place on a prestigious exchange program to the...
Mar 17, 2018•14 min
Cycling hero Bradley Wiggins was accused by MPs this week of "crossing an ethical line" by taking medication that could have enhanced his race performance. Rising from a rocky start to become Great Britain's most decorated Olympian, Wiggins has lived a fascinating life including murder, mods and music. Can his reputation survive this? Presented by Mark Coles Produced by Jordan Dunbar and Beth Sagar-Fenton.
Mar 10, 2018•14 min
As the United Nations' Special Envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura is said to have one of the toughest jobs in the world. Edward Stourton talks to the people who know him best to find out what drives him and how he is navigating one of the most complex conflicts in recent history. Born in Stockholm to a Swedish mother and an Italian father, de Mistura went to primary school on the island of Capri, where he was taught by Catholic nuns who instilled in him a strong faith and a desire to help other ...
Mar 03, 2018•14 min
Black Panther star Daniel Kaluuya has already won BAFTA's Rising Star award and now he's been nominated for a Best Actor Oscar. The 28-year-old Londoner is up against acting giants Daniel Day-Lewis, Gary Oldman and Denzel Washington, having been shortlisted for his role in the satirical horror movie Get Out. Raised by his Ugandan mother, who remains an inspiration, Kaluuya grew up on a council estate in North London. He first came to public attention as a teenager, when he wrote and performed in...
Feb 24, 2018•14 min
