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This is the story of the most powerful man you have never heard of. He can spot an ex-spy with presidential potential and help turn him into a world leader. He creates opposition movements out of thin air. He has got a nation’s news directors on speed dial. Billionaires seek his advice. He has even got his own little war. He is at the heart of the standoff between East and West. Some even credit him with pioneering the concept of post-truth politics. Yet few even know his name.

He is Vladislav Surkov. His background is in theatre and PR. He has a taste for Beat poetry, American rap and postmodern theory. But his politics are 100% Russian, and they are spreading. Surkov invented Russia’s ‘managed democracy’ – where authorities arrange not only elections, but the results as well. He guided Vladimir Putin to his current unassailable position atop Russian politics. Now, Surkov is focussed on Ukraine, where the separatist movement he helped create continues its bitter war on Europe’s eastern flank.

The bewildering heart of contemporary Russia is explored through the fortunes of this secretive, complicated and controversial man. Reporter Gabriel Gatehouse speaks fluent Russian and has access to a vast cache of leaked emails from Surkov’s Kremlin office. Using these, plus archive and sources gained over a decade of covering Russia and its wars, Gatehouse goes in search of the man pulling the strings.