Investigating Iris Robinson

Top BBC journalists reveal how they exposed the shocking scandal that toppled Northern Ireland’s First Minister Peter Robinson and his wife, Iris, from power, revealing a web of financial deceit tied to an extramarital affair that beggared belief.

An inside source came forward to claim Iris Robinson used her political position to secure £50,000 from two property developers to fund the business venture of her then lover, a man 40 years her junior that she had known since he was a child.

The whistleblower was a principled RAF chaplain and political advisor to the Robinsons. Despite the personal risks, he set the team of investigative journalists on the path to uncovering the truth by revealing astounding details whatever the political cost.

As the investigation unfolds, the team painstakingly piece together the extraordinary evidence, uncovering a series of damning texts that showed a cover-up designed to keep the truth of Iris Robinson’s financial dealings hidden from the public. Then, edging ever closer to broadcast, they discover the biggest scandal of all – proof of a love affair between the 59-year-old Iris Robinson and the 19-year-old man who stood to benefit from the loans she had organised.

BBC Spotlight’s Darragh MacIntyre, Mary McKeagney and Imelda Lynch were there to see the investigation through to its shocking conclusion, exploding the long-simmering scandal that would change the face of Northern Irish politics forever.