By BBC Radio 4
An insight into the character of an influential figure making news headlines
Newly-elected leader of the SNP, Humza Yousaf, has become First Minister of Scotland at the age of just 37. The Glaswegian showed community spirit from a young age, fundraising for charity and broadcasting for community station Radio Ramadan, before...
Baroness Louise Casey has this week delivered an excoriating review into the standards of behaviour and internal culture of the Metropolitan Police. It’s just the latest of a series of tough reports issued by Casey during a career tackling deep-rooted...
Shadow chancellor and former economist Rachel Reeves, who was a national chess champion aged 14.
Scottish screenwriter Lesley Paterson’s debut film, All Quiet on the Western Front, has won seven BAFTAs and has nine Oscar nominations, including Best Adapted Screenplay. It took her and co-writer Ian Stokell sixteen years to get their script to...
Born in Jamaica to parents who were both doctors, Professor Dame Angela McLean was fascinated by science from a young age. After studying maths at university, her PhD thesis involved pioneering work on measles. She’s also done...
Born in London, to Jamaican parents who came to Britain as part of the 1950s Windrush generation, Shirley J. Thompson fell in love with music from a very young age – and it has remained her life’s passion. ...
Irish actor Barry Keoghan spent most of his childhood in foster homes, losing his mother to addiction issues when he was just 12-years-old. He found his passion for acting after answering a casting notice for a short indie film in...
Health Secretary, Steve Barclay, spent his gap year serving with the Royal Fusiliers. Now he finds himself in the line of fire from striking health workers, in a long-running dispute over pay. His job is to somehow...
The naturalist, broadcaster, author and campaigner has announced he is taking a three-month sabbatical from his TV work to give himself some ‘brain space’. After rising to prominence in the 1980s as a presenter on the BBC children's TV programme...
Nan Goldin has been documenting her life through photography since her teens, revealing and intimate portraits exploring issues from sex and drug addition to domestic violence and parenthood. Laura Poitras's film celebrating Nan's work, 'All the Beauty and the Bloodshed'...
After suffering a fall that has left him paralysed, the playwright, screenwriter and author has begun sharing his thoughts with the world from his hospital bed. Born in suburban Bromley to an English mother and a Pakistani father, Hanif Kureishi...
As the threat of teacher strikes looms over schools in England, Mark Coles looks at the life and career of Education secretary and Conservative MP for Chichester, Gillian Keegan. Friends and colleagues reveal how coming of age in Liverpool during...
Paul Nowak has taken up his post as General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress at a time when workers across multiple sectors are striking for better pay deals to help with the cost-of-living crisis. It's the worst period of...
It's hard to remember that the actor who plays straight-talking cop Catherine Cawood in crime drama Happy Valley, set to return on New Year's Day, was once ditzy barmaid Raquel in Coronation Street. From musicals to soaps to hit drama...
People across the country will be turning to TV chefs this week to help plan the festivities - and, arguably, nobody does Christmas better than Nigella. Mark Coles takes a look at the life of Nigella Lawson, the daughter of...
As nurses strike and the Health Service faces winter pressures, Mark Coles looks at the life and career of Shadow Health Secretary and Labour MP for Ilford North, Wes Streeting. Friend and colleagues reveal how childhood poverty and a cancer...
Oliver Dowden, the MP for Hertsmere, has worked closely with four Prime Ministers, David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson and now Rishi Sunak, one of his best friends in parliament. He's made his mark quietly, mainly behind the scenes -...
Olena Zelenska delivered a moving speech to MPs and peers recently, describing the terror of air raids, evoking memories of World War II and calling for further military support for her country. The Ukrainian first lady has also addressed the...
Stand-up comic, broadcaster and LGBT rights activist, Joe Lycett, appeared to shred £10,000 of his own hard-earned comedy cash in protest at footballer David Beckham’s refusal to step down as an ambassador for the Qatar World Cup - a country...
Wales are heading to their first football World Cup since 1958. Their captain is Gareth Bale, who was once the most expensive footballer in the world. Born in Cardiff in 1989, Gareth was first spotted at the age of...
This week the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) announced its first ever nationwide strike. Pat Cullen, the RCN's General Secretary and Chief Executive, will lead them into industrial action which is expected to start in December. Born in Northern Ireland,...
Since entering Parliament in 2017, the MP for Saffron Walden has rapidly risen through the ranks to a seat at the Cabinet table as Trade Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities. Kemi Badenoch surprised some in Westminster when she...
This month, the multi-award-winning violinist has started work as the first Scottish and first female director of the Edinburgh Festival since it began in 1947. Nicola Benedetti's passion for culture also extends well beyond performing; she's used her high profile...
The chancellor, Surrey-based entrepreneur and protege of David Cameron. He served as Foreign and Health Secretary while twice challenging - unsuccessfully - for the Conservative Party leadership. In just a few days he tore up most of the prime...
Erling Haaland is a phenomenon. Since arriving in the summer, Manchester City's Norwegian star striker has lit up the Premier League after scoring 20 goals in 13 games. Born in Leeds to a footballing father and an athlete mother, he...
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, commonly known as Lula, was born into poverty in Brazil in 1945. Coming to prominence as a union leader, he failed to become president on three previous occasions before finally succeeding in 2002. He...
Downing Street's new Chief of Staff, Mark Fullbrook, is not a stranger to politics. He's been the "backroom boy" behind many political campaigns around the world, including Boris Johnson's successful Mayor of London campaigns and President George Bush’s unsuccessful re-election...
As Italians go to the polls it's Giorgia Meloni's right-wing party, Brothers of Italy, that's tipped to lead a centre-right coalition. But what is it about her that appeals so much to her voters? Meloni was born in a working-class...
The new Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, faces big challenges in his first week in office. The state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II will be at the top of his agenda, but also improving the reputation of the force....
Described as “incredibly bright, borderline eccentric and very Thatcherite”, Kwasi Kwarteng has been MP for Spelthorne in Surrey, since 2010. Born in London to Ghanaian parents, Kwasi Kwarteng excelled academically – he was an Eton scholar,...
Winner of this year’s Olivier Best Actress Award for her role in the musical Cabaret, now nominated for a Mercury Prize with Bernard Butler for their album, For All Our Days That Tear the Heart. Mark Coles profiles...
Despite finishing second in the vote amongst her Conservative parliamentary colleagues, Liz Truss is seen by many as the favourite to win the leadership contest when party members have their say. But who is the woman bidding to become the...
Just seven years after first entering Parliament as Conservative MP for Richmond, North Yorkshire, Rishi Sunak is now one vote away from becoming Prime Minister. From replacing party grandee William Hague to managing the country’s finances through the coronavirus pandemic,...
Born in the Netherlands, the England women's football manager had a successful playing career both at home and in the US, before hanging up her boots. Mark Coles tracks her journey from playing alongside boys at the age of six...
The new Chancellor who came to the UK as a child refugee, began a business selling Teletubbies merchandise and is now tipped by some to become Prime Minister. Mark Coles charts the meteoric rise to power of the man who's...
Timandra Harkness tells the story of the the US Supreme Court Justice at the centre of overturning the right to abortion in America. How did he go from poverty in Georgia to highest court in the land? And why did...
As national rail strikes disrupt train travel across the UK, what makes RMT leader Mick Lynch tick? And how did he become the leader of one of Britain's most powerful unions? With Mark Coles. Produced by Bob Howard
Kate Bush, whose song Running up that Hill is storming the charts across the world. The singer exploded onto the music scene at the end of the 1970s with Wuthering Heights, the first UK number one song performed and written...
Johan Lundgren, Chief Executive Officer of Easyjet, one of Europe's biggest airlines. The carrier has been faced customer fury after cancelling hundreds of flights. Johan Lundgren has dealt with extremely trying personal and professional situations at different times in his...
What makes Ben Stokes, the New Zealand born poster boy of English cricket and England's new captain tick? He has at times courted controversy but was the hero in England's world cup triumph. With Mark Coles. Produced by Bob Howard
Boris Johnson’s Mr Fixit - a Deputy Chief of Staff - brought in to steady the ship at the height of the "Partygate" allegations. Described as politically astute and determined for the Conservatives to win the next election, Canzini's career...
Jack Monroe rose to fame with her blog 'A Girl Called Jack’, sharing her struggles as a single mum on benefits, with just £10 a week to spend on food. She’s become a best-selling, award-winning writer of cookery books...
The brutal and corrupt regime of Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos was overthrown in 1986, yet their son, known as Bongbong, is leading the race to become the next president of The Philippines. Edward Stourton profiles the life and career...
Her multi-media work celebrates the achievements of women in music and art, challenges racial and sexual bias and asks how our cultural institutions can become more inclusive. From pastels to a cappella, Mark Coles profiles the life and...
Playwright, screenwriter and creator of the hit TV sitcom Derry Girls, about five school friends in 1990s Northern Ireland - getting up to all sorts.
The far-right politician going head-to-head with Emmanuel Macron in the French presidential elections. Mark Coles charts Marine Le Pen's life and political career, which began alongside her father Jean-Marie Le Pen - founder of the far right Front National...
Despite being fired by Amazon early in the pandemic, Chris Smalls continued to campaign for better rights and conditions for Amazon employees, setting up the Amazon Labor Union last year. Now the Staten Island warehouse where Chris used to be...
Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert has helped millions of people save money through consumer advice and big campaigns on bank charges and mis-sold PPI credit insurance. But now with the cost of living crisis, has he "run out of tools"?...
She made history in the US this week as the first black woman to go through Senate confirmation hearings for an appointment to America’s all powerful Supreme Court. A person of profound faith, Ketanji Brown Jackson poured her soul into...
One of Britain’s most popular authors, Dame Jacqueline Wilson is famous for stories of sassy children, troubled teens and struggling parents. Her books explore themes including death, divorce and depression. Now, the award-winning writer, who created characters like Tracy Beaker,...