Sir Ed Davey is a mallet wielding, man on a mission. That mission is to demolish the Conservative 'blue wall' which he's already made a hole in after the surprise Liberal Democrat victory at the Chesham and Amersham by-election in June this year. With a First class degree from Oxford, he could have ended up as a spy, but instead chose the path well trodden for a PPE graduate, politics, taking a job as Economics Researcher to the then leader, Paddy Ashdown. He's committed to renewable energy and ...
Sep 18, 2021•14 min
The seminal rapper and billionaire fashion mogul Kanye West's new album Donda is named after his late mother, who was an influential figure in his life. It's gone straight to number one in many countries, it's the most successful album of the year already, clocking up over 180 million streams in just 24 hours. Some consider Kanye West - who also calls himself Ye - a creative genius. Others have been put off by controversial behaviour. President Obama called him a "jackass", after Kanye interrupt...
Sep 11, 2021•14 min
Following a sometimes ugly campaign, Britain's second largest trade union, Unite, has elected its first woman leader, Sharon Graham. But who exactly is she? Jealously guarding her privacy, Unite's new 52 year-old head represents a significant break with the union's retiring chief, Len McCluskey and, it would seem, his close political links with the Labour Party. Instead, centering her campaign on bringing the union "back to the workplace", Sharon Graham has emphasised her own focus on jobs, pay ...
Sep 04, 2021•14 min
With the fall of Kabul and the Taliban back in power in Afghanistan, this week Mark Coles profiles the man who’s become the public face of the strict Islamist movement - its political leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar. Baradar was one of those who founded the Taliban almost thirty years ago. Now, after spending eight years in a Pakistani jail, many are tipping him to be Afghanistan’s next President. Mark Coles speaks to some of the world’s leading experts on the Taliban to try to find out more a...
Aug 28, 2021•14 min
By the end of July this year, more than 80 million vaccinations had been administered in the UK. Mark Coles takes a look at the talented and determined scientist leading the Oxford University vaccine team, Professor Sarah Gilbert. Producers: Ben Crighton and Soila Apparicio.
Aug 21, 2021•15 min
George Mpanga, better known as George the Poet, is a British spoken word poet, podcaster and advocate for social change. Born in north London after his parents fled Uganda in the 1980s, he’s become an increasingly significant voice in the debate on race and class in the UK. His innovative style mixes music and poetry. It has won him critical acclaim both as a recording artist and a social commentator, playing to a wide range of audiences, from the Cheltenham Literature Festival to 1Xtra. His awa...
Jul 24, 2021•14 min
Last October, British sprint cyclist, Mark Cavendish, broke down on TV, fearing he’d cycled the last race of his career. Now the 36 year-old is making sporting history, against the odds. After illness and injury, the man dubbed the Manx Missile has now equalled the record – set by cycling legend Eddie Merckx - for the most Tour de France stage wins. And, if things go well for him on this last weekend of the Tour, he could even top that tally of 34. And yet, Cavendish only secured a place in the ...
Jul 17, 2021•14 min
For almost a decade Raheem Sterling has been one of English football’s most talked about players. Born in Jamacia and raised in the shadow of the Wembley arch, he burst onto the scene as a precocious 17 year old talent at Liverpool. But for all his talent on the pitch, Sterling has been just as defined by his battles off it. He has had frequent tussles with the tabloid press and has become one of the most outspoken voices against the racist abuse suffered by black players. Edward Stourton gets b...
Jul 10, 2021•14 min
He's 23, with 16 Grand Slam titles to his name and focused on winning his first Wimbledon singles title. Yet British wheelchair tennis champion, Alfie Hewett, is facing the end of his career because of a change in rules. The elite sportsman, from Norwich, Norfolk, is currently ineligible to compete beyond 2021 after being told by the International Tennis Federation that his disability is not severe enough. Mark Coles talks to friends, family and career professionals to find out how the sports-lo...
Jul 03, 2021•14 min
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is one of Nigeria’s foremost literary voices. Her writing is noted for its touching examination of homeland, identity and feminism. For more than a decade she has been coaching and mentoring promising young authors through her yearly workshops in Lagos, bringing a new generation of African writers to mainstream attention. On the subject of transgender people and feminism, Chimamanda Adichie has been criticised by some on social media for comments she made in a 2017 TV in...
Jun 26, 2021•14 min
The military commando turned self-made tech millionaire who’s now Prime Minister of Israel. The right-wing, nationalist, supporter of Jewish settlement in the West Bank has formed an unlikely alliance of left and right, secular and religious, Jewish and Arab. Once the chief of staff to Benjamin Netanyahu, Naftali Bennett brought an end to his old boss’s 12 years in power. Presenter: Mark Coles Researcher: Sowda Ali Studio manager: Graham Puddifoot Programme co-ordinator: Janet Staples Producer: ...
Jun 19, 2021•14 min
The multi-talented performer has just made BAFTA history, after taking top honours for ‘I May Destroy You’, her drama about sexual consent. The TV show – which she created, wrote, directed and starred in - also won best mini-series. It was inspired by Michaela Coel’s own experience of sexual assault after her drink was spiked. Born in London to Ghanaian parents, 33 year-old Michaela Coel grew up with her single mum and older sister on a council estate in London’s East End. At eighteen, she becam...
Jun 12, 2021•14 min
Joanne Anderson has just taken on what many might call one of the toughest jobs in local government - leading the Labour council at the centre of corruption allegations. Liverpool-born and bred, the 50 year-old single mum only became a Labour councillor in 2019. But she was encouraged to stand as mayor when her predecessor, Joe Anderson (no relation) stood down after being arrested over claims relating to bribery, which he strongly denies. Growing up on a council estate east of the city centre, ...
Jun 05, 2021•14 min
Kate Bingham took on one of the hardest jobs in the Covid pandemic - finding and procuring the necessary vaccines to stop people dying. A venture capitalist who invests in new drugs, she got the call from the Prime Minister who asked her to chair the UK’s Vaccine Taskforce. Once she had worked out which vaccines to back and order in advance, she and her team had to get the systems in place to roll them out in record time. Before this she had spent 30 years in private equity in the city, which sh...
May 29, 2021•14 min
Edwin Poots has been named as the new leader of the Democratic Unionist Party. A farmer from the outskirts of Lisburn, not far from Belfast. Mr Poots entered political life in 1997 - and, since then, he's slowly but steadily risen to the top. He's held four Ministeries including health and agriculture and is viewed across the sectarian divide as a shrewd political strategist. A devoutly religious and committed member of the Free Presbyterian church, Mr Poots's ultra-conservative views on issues ...
May 22, 2021•15 min
It's been an eventful few weeks for the Labour Party - especially for its deputy leader, Angela Rayner MP. Over the course of a topsy-turvy weekend, leaked plans to sack her from her role as party chair and national campaigns coordinator triggered an outcry, which, in turn, led Keir Starmer to instead offer a major promotion. Her back-story is, however, unusual for one who has risen so high, so quickly in British politics. Coming from an impoverished background, and leaving school at 16 with no ...
May 15, 2021•14 min
The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is hugely popular, credited with bringing stability and modernisation to his country in his 8 years of leadership. But his critics say lately he has been too absorbed with his political ambitions and not focused enough on protecting the country from the pandemic. Could the disastrous second wave of coronavirus that has engulfed India dent the unassailable rise of Narendra Modi? Presenter: Mark Coles Researcher: Stefania Okereke Studio manager: Rod Farquhar...
May 08, 2021•14 min
Brexit, Coronavirus and now ‘Sofagate’. It's been a challenging year for the first female President of the European Commission, who’s been criticised for the EU’s response to Covid-19 and blamed for a delay in getting people jabbed. Now, the organisation she heads is suing vaccine manufacturer, AstraZeneca, over delays in supplying doses. This week, she told the European parliament how she'd been left standing during a recent meeting in Turkey, because she is a woman. Her male counterparts took ...
May 01, 2021•14 min
The rags to riches story of the billionaire brothers from Blackburn, Lancashire who have grown their business from a single petrol station in 2001 to a global empire of six thousand garage forecourts in less than twenty years. Notoriously private, the brothers became national news last year after buying the supermarket giant, Asda. Last week they added the fast-food chain, Leon, to their portfolio. And now they’re rumoured to have their eye on Caffé Nero. Talking to family, friends and business ...
Apr 24, 2021•14 min
Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland - who's facing calls to resign over the policing of a republican funeral during the pandemic, sparking violent disorder and protests. Simon Byrne, who's 57, is a policeman through and through. He joined the Metropolitan police as a teenager, straight out of school. Rising through the ranks, he took on senior roles in Merseyside, Manchester, London and Cheshire. He's now head of police in Northern Ireland, a post which many regard as the m...
Apr 17, 2021•14 min
The billionaire banker whose finance firm has collapsed and who is now at the centre of a lobbying scandal involving ex-Prime Minister, David Cameron. Alexander "Lex" Greensill, grew up on his family’s sugar cane and melon farm in Queensland, Australia. After moving to the UK, he went into investment banking, founded a supply chain finance empire - complete with private jets - and, under David Cameron, secured a role in Britain’s Conservative-led Coalition government. After leaving office, the e...
Apr 10, 2021•14 min
Emerald Fennell is the first British woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director. The film, that she also wrote - 'Promising Young Woman' - has been called a 'revenge-comedy', a movie for the #MeToo era. Fennell's rise has been meteoric - showrunner for the second series of 'Killing Eve', she's also well-known for her roles in front of the camera, including her portrayal of the Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla Parker Bowles, in 'The Crown'. Becky Milligan tells the story of a prolif...
Apr 03, 2021•14 min
AstraZeneca's CEO faces scrutiny as his company's vaccine, and its roll out, comes under fire. Mark Coles explores the life and career one of big pharma's biggest names. The oldest of four boys, Pascal Soriot grew up in a working class area of Paris. He took the helm at AZ in 2012 after years in top jobs across the world. One of his first challenges was to fight off a takeover from Pfizer. The AZ vaccine, currently not-for-profit, was hailed as a life saver for millions. But with accusations of ...
Mar 27, 2021•14 min
Journalist, controversialist, celebrity - Mark Coles explores the explosive career of Piers Morgan, one of the country's youngest-ever and best-known newspaper editors. In the spotlight, again, this time for storming off the set of ITV's "Good Morning Britain", colleagues, competitors, friends and foes detail a roller-coaster career. If it started with a desire to report from behind the headlines, as years passed he has all too frequently become their subject. Presenter: Mark Coles Researcher: M...
Mar 20, 2021•15 min
The attorney general of Minnesota is the lead prosecutor in the trial for murder of George Floyd who died in May last year. His death became front page news after a video showed a white police officer kneeling on his neck for nearly nine minutes. It sparked massive civil unrest and forced a wider debate about law enforcement and racial inequality. Keith Ellison's role in the trial which started this week will be closely watched. He was born in Detroit in 1963, one of five brothers to parents wit...
Mar 13, 2021•14 min
The former dentist who’s just become the new leader of Scottish Labour. Anas' childhood was infused with politics - his father became the UK's first muslim MP and his mother devoted a great deal of time to activism and campaigning. But that came at a cost. The family endured racist threats while he was growing up. Now a lot rests on his shoulders. With only nine weeks until the Holyrood elections, can he turn round the party's fortunes in Scotland and in so doing change the make-up of Westminste...
Mar 06, 2021•14 min
Carrie Symonds is Boris Johnson's fiancee and the mother of his baby. She is a also a former special advisor, committed animal rights activist and Brexit supporter. And, not that long ago, she was director of communications for the Conservative Party. It's that political experience that has fuelled questions about how much influence she has over decisions made in Downing Street. The Bow Group think tank this week called for an inquiry into her role. Mark Coles profiles the woman who has been mak...
Feb 27, 2021•14 min
Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala's journey to head the World Trade Organisation has been particularly note-worthy. She is the first woman and the first African to hold the position. A trained economist, she was at the World Bank during the financial crisis and, as Nigeria’s finance minister, she faced down corruption. It's not just her career that sets her apart. As a child she lived through the Biafran War. Years later she faced another crisis: the kidnapping of her elderly mother. But her friends say sh...
Feb 21, 2021•14 min
David Martindale joined Livingston FC as a volunteer six years ago, picking up bibs and cones after training sessions. Now he is managing a team that's about to play in the Scottish League Cup Final. It has been an unconventional and bumpy rise to the top. Martindale went to jail in 2006, doing time for his involvement in organised crime, Mark Coles talks to his family, friends and football colleagues about his past, his leadership style and what the future may hold. Will his chequered history t...
Feb 13, 2021•14 min
The first female british chef to win 3 Michelin stars at her own restaurant hails from a farm in County Antrim. Mark Coles talks to those who know Clare Smyth well - at home and in the kitchen - including legendary chefs Alain Ducasse and Angela Hartnett. Clare Smyth left Northern Ireland to train in England at just 16 and has gone her own way ever since. A protegee of some of the world's best known chefs, she ran Gordon Ramsay's flagship restaurant before setting up her own, Core, just three ye...
Feb 06, 2021•14 min
