Bare-chested photo ops and the invasion of Georgia - what Vladimir Putin did as prime minister. Then, he returns to the presidency vowing to save Russia from the west.

To make sense of his carefully crafted image and how his attitudes to both Ukraine and the West have defined his rule, Jonny Dymond is joined by:

Catherine Belton, author of ‘Putin’s People: How the KGB took back Russia and took on the West'

Andrei Soldatov, a Russian investigative journalist and author of ‘The New Nobility: The Restoration of Russia's Security State and the Enduring Legacy of the KGB’

Mark Galeotti, University College London lecturer and director of Mayak Intelligence.

Production coordinators: Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed

Cementing power in Russia, a revolution in Ukraine and a challenge to the US - Jonny Dymond examines Vladimir Putin’s second term as president. To help him make sense of how this tumultuous period from 2004 to 2008 began a path towards events we are witnessing today, he’s joined by:

Steven Lee Myers, former Moscow bureau chief for the New York Times and author of ‘The New Tsar; The rise and reign of Vladamir Putin’

Production coordinators: Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed

President Putin turns on the men who manoeuvred him to power, he turns on the media and turns to the West with an offer of support after 9/11.

According to Britain’s former ambassador to Russia, there are two sides to Putin; one pragmatic and charming, the other angry and irrational. To understand him and what he might do next you need to learn to read both.

Jonny Dymond is joined by:

Sir Roderic John Lyne, British Ambassador to Russia from 2000 to 2004

Production coordinators: Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed

Operation successor: the story behind the Russian president's mysterious rise to power. From bag carrier to the most powerful man in Russia. In just a few years Vladimir Putin went from working for the mayor of St Petersburg to being prime minister, then president.

To make sense of how he did it, Jonny Dymond is joined by:

Misha Glenny, former BBC correspondent and author of ‘McMafia’

Production coordinators: Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed

Sound engineer: James Beard

From street thug to spy – what the Russian president did before he came to power.

To understand what Vladimir Putin might do in the future, you need to understand his past; where he’s come from, what he’s lived through, what he’s done. Jonny Dymond hears tales of secret agents, gangsters and the time a young Putin faced off a rat.

He’s joined by:

Nina Khrushcheva, Professor of International Affairs at The New School in New York and the great-granddaughter of former Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev

Production coordinators: Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed

Sound engineer: James Beard

Jonny Dymond tells the extraordinary and revealing story of Vladimir Putin's life.