Having helped mastermind Labour's renewal in the 1980s and 1990s, one of British politics best-known figures has just embarked on his latest role.

And, it's a long way from Hartlepool, in the post-industrial North-East of England, where he first became an MP.

Born in 1953, Peter Mandelson started on the road to party politics as a researcher at the Trades Union Congress. After a stint as a TV producer, he left to take up the role of Labour's director of communications, but his real ambition was a place in Parliament.

Even his sternest critics accept he is a slick political operator and a good networker, but he’s a controversial figure – with a big challenge ahead.

Stephen Smith takes a closer look at the UK’s new ambassador to the US, and the man once dubbed the "Prince of Darkness".

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