Thatcher and the Coup that Failed

For the last 10 months, detail after detail about the disastrous attempt to mount a coup in Equatorial Guinea has been leaking into the public arena.

But this film blows the lid off the coup, meeting the key players and dishing the dirt that no-one else knows. It tells the inside story of international power play, oil-fuelled greed, men with guns and the son of the former British Prime Minister.

Fronted by Alex Millar, this film puts together the jigsaw of what happened, why, and who knew about it. During the process, the team met intelligence officers, top ranking US senators, diplomats, men who were approached to take part in the coup and more.

Interviewees include Nick Du Toit, currently residing in the less than salubrious surroundings of Black Beach prison in Equatorial Guinea and Johann Smith, the man who told the British government about the coup plans. It has gained evidence that Sir Mark Thatcher was in regular communication with the men involved, and it reveals that one of the men reported to be working closely with the team claimed to have met one of President Bush’s top advisors. It explores the idea that the coup plotters were also lured into a trap.

The programme tracks the story from the oilfields of Equatorial Guinea to the money men in London. With access to documents and testimony, it shows how the plan was to unfold - and how the mercenaries were to be armed. We hear from the inside how it all went wrong, and see that even after one failure, Equatorial Guinea may soon come under attack from a different direction...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/tv/3_investigates/mark_thatcher.shtml