Who is Michelle Mone, why is there a BBC documentary about her and when is part two out?
Michelle Mone spent more than two decades building a reputation as one of the UK’s fiercest businesswomen.
A master of media and self-promotion, she was celebrated for her rags-to-riches journey, pushing her Ultimo bra brand into high street giants and securing a seat in the House of Lords.
But now, Baroness Mone of Mayfair finds herself at the centre of controversy. Stripped of the Conservative whip, on leave from the Lords, and linked to a business under criminal investigation, her once-glowing public image is now under intense scrutiny.
The BBC’s new two-part documentary, The Rise and Fall of Michelle Mone, traces her story from 1999, when she landed a deal with Selfridges at just 28, to her more recent involvement in a government PPE scandal during the Covid-19 pandemic. Mone has defended herself from the allegations and described the documentary as “one-sided”.
Her knack for self-promotion helped her to build a profile in the media during the early 2000s, fuelling tabloids with stories about how she provided bras to Hollywood - including for Julia Roberts in the film Erin Brockovich. Producers denied this, but by the time the rumour had made it to print, it was too late.
Separating from her husband Michael in 2011 and buying him out of their business, she became the sole owner of the brand. She became the face of Ultimo too, modelling the lingerie herself.
In 2015, she became a Conservative peer in the House of Lords - an appointment made by then-Prime Minister David Cameron, five years after Mone defected from the Labour Party to support the Tories.
But it was in 2020, as the UK scrambled for PPE, that the story took a darker turn.
A company called PPE Medpro, linked to new partner Doug Barrowman, secured contracts via a government “VIP lane” set up to fast-track trusted suppliers. Mone publicly denied any connection to the firm, but the Guardian uncovered emails and WhatsApp messages showing she had contacted ministers including Michael Gove, offering to supply PPE through “my team in Hong Kong.”
Journalist David Conn later obtained leaked documents indicating Barrowman earned at least £65m from the deals - £29m of which was placed into a trust benefiting Mone and her three adult children. The National Crime Agency launched an investigation, raiding several of the couple’s properties.
After maintaining silence for much of the scandal, Mone and Barrowman resurfaced in late 2023, releasing a PPE Medpro-funded documentary in which Mone admitted acting as a “conduit” between the company and ministers. She also appeared on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, acknowledging she could benefit from the trust but insisting they had “done nothing wrong.”
Pressed on previously lying to the media, Mone said: “That’s not a crime. Saying to the press I’m not involved, to protect my family - it’s not a crime.”
Interviewer Laura Kuenssberg later said: “That’s a phrase that will always stick with me.”
The BBC documentary seeks to answer the question: how did one of Britain’s most celebrated entrepreneurs become a key figure in one of the government’s biggest Covid-era controversies?
In a statement provided to NationalWorld, Mone said: “‘I am deeply disappointed by the BBC’s decision to broadcast a programme using misleading and one-sided accounts of my life and career. I hope that the programme does not discourage young women from pursuing their ambitions.
“The allegations relating to my husband’s company, PPE Medpro, will be defended in court.”
The Rise and Fall of Michelle Mone is available on BBC iPlayer, and will be broadcast on BBC Scotland this evening (May 26). Part two is also available to watch online.