Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
DOCUMENTARY
PUTIN’S RUSSIA WITH DAVID DIMBLEBY BBC1, 9pm
Vladimir Putin has ruled the largest country on Earth for 18 years and has just stormed to victory in yet another election.
He is so loved by Russians it’s tantamount to hero worship, says David Dimbleby in this documentary. Meanwhile in the west, Putin is seen as a threat and British Intelligence calls him a “criminal thug”.
As thousands of British fans pour into Russia for tomorrow’s World Cup, Dimbleby is there to ask what kind of country are they coming to. As he sifts through tourist memorabilia, adorned with Putin’s image (some with his top off and wearing sunglasses), it seems the leader is more a superstar than a politician.
Dimbleby asks: “How has he managed to stay in power for so long, and what do Russians see in him that we don’t?”
Talking to supporters, protestors and even children learning to shoot guns in a patriotic youth club, this is an eye-opening look at a country so very different to ours.