Profile

Synonymous with Glastonbury Festival, Michael Eavis is the bearded impresario of one of the biggest parties on earth. But this is no hedonistic figure: in reality, Eavis is a near-teetotal Method-ist who happily admits that his beloved herd of cows comes before the celebrities, rock and roll... or even the show itself.

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has announced Amanda Spielman is set to take over as chief inspector of schools in England. But the decision has provoked some controversy. Teaching unions have pointed out that Amanda Spielman has never been a teacher herself. But others have defended her, saying her experience setting up a successful academies chain - and most recently at exams regulator Ofqual - mean she's well-placed to take on this important role. Mark Coles has been finding out what makes Amanda Spielman tick.

This week the Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley gave evidence to a Business Select Committee inquiry into working conditions at his firm. In a rare public appearance, he admitted that the company had been paying employees less than the minimum wage. But how much do we really know about this secretive billionaire? He is one of the most intriguing characters in British business but also one of the most elusive. He is the driving force behind the Sports Direct empire, entrepreneur, owner of Newcastle United and once a possible saviour of BHS. In this programme Edward Stourton searches for the secret behind Mike Ashley's huge retail success and asks how much control he really has over his business.

This programme contains material from a previous episode of Profile about Mike Ashley first broadcast on Saturday 23 Feb 2013.

Producer: Laura Gray.

The Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro, has vowed to keep alive the defiant revolution begun by Hugo Chavez. And that revolution has global radical support. But with growing economic chaos and street protests, it's feared that Venezuela is descending into chaos. Maduro has maintained the cult of Chavez, blamed his problems on CIA plots, and told the women of Venezuela to stop using hair driers as the oil-rich country faces constant power cuts. So what has shaped Maduro in his defiance? Can he hold the country together? Chris Bowlby explores his life and career.

Producer: Alex Burton.

To many, including himself, Jose Mourinho is the most successful football manager in the world - the 'special one'.

He has won league titles in all of the countries he's worked in. But he is also divisive; famous for igniting rows with opponents and provoking referees.

Mourinho was born into football. His father was a goalkeeper who once played for Portugal. The young Jose wanted to be a player too but after short spells in minor clubs he realised coaching offered him a brighter future.

Fast forward 25 years and this week Mourinho has been named Manchester United's new manager.

Presenter: Mark Coles

Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, is credited with detoxifying the Tory brand in Scotland. A kick-boxing, Territorial Army-trained, gay Christian with working-class roots, she's not your typical Tory.

This month she's led a Conservative resurgence in Scotland. The Scottish Conservatives are now the largest opposition party in Holyrood, kicking Labour into third place. David Cameron has tipped her as a potential successor.

At just 37 her rise has been meteoric. She joined the Conservative Party only 7 years ago after a career in broadcasting. How has she done it? Mark Coles finds out.

Producer: Ben Crighton.

Chief executive of Easyjet, Dame Carolyn McCall, is one of the UK's most successful businesswomen. Initially seen as an outsider, she has won over staff and investors, piloting the airline into the FTSE 100.

Over the past three decades, she's also run the Guardian Media Group, and brought her wisdom to the boardrooms of Lloyds TSB, Tesco, Burberry and New Look. Last year she was voted Britain's most admired business leader.

An only child, Dame Carolyn was brought up in Bangalore and Singapore, before moving to boarding school in Derbyshire, and later meeting her husband at Kent University.

Mark Coles finds out more about this high flyer from her school roommate, former colleagues Alan Rusbridger and Sir Michael Rake, and Easyjet pilot Captain Angus Hogg.

Presenter: Mark Coles

Mark Coles profiles the life of the Labour politician, Lord Dubs.

Born in 1932, Alfred Dubs came to the UK as a 6 year old, from Czechoslovakia on the 'Kindertransport'.

Friends and political opponents describe Lord Dubs as persuasive and determined. The programme speaks to friends, tennis partners and those who've been dragged up mountains by him.

Produced by Ruth Alexander and Sarah Shebbeare.

She's been described as a swearing, chain-smoking version of Mother Teresa. Mother-of-two Liz Clegg was once a firefighter in Devon who hung out at music festivals. These days she spends most of her time in France, raising funds and caring round the clock for hundreds of young unaccompanied children in the so-called Jungle in Calais.

Her efforts have attracted international attention, with Clegg being invited to discuss her work in the US. Her admirers in the UK include the actress Juliet Stevenson.

Becky Milligan speaks to Liz Clegg's daughter Inca, her childhood friend Rufus Norris and others to reveal how she became a surrogate mother to so many.

Presenter: Becky Milligan

Sir Martin Sorrell has spent the last three decades transforming a maker of wire shopping baskets into the world's largest advertising firm. The self-proclaimed workaholic bought a stake in Wire and Plastic Products plc in 1985 and has since taken the advertising world by storm with a string of major acquisitions.

His meteoric rise is not without controversy. He is known for his relentless work ethic, punishing schedule, and ruthless approach to business. He has engaged in bitterly hostile takeovers, falling out with his competitors along the way.

The business has made Sorrell a wealthy man. This year his salary is expected to hit £70m, a sum which he has no qualms defending. Sir Martin believes he is "worth every penny".

Mark Coles speaks to Sir Martin Sorrell's childhood friend Simon Schama, his wife Cristiana Falcone and his colleagues and competitors, to reveal how he became the world's most powerful ad man.

Presenter: Mark Coles