In August 2020, on a flight to Moscow, Russia’s charismatic opposition leader, Alexei Navalny started to scream in agony. The flight immediately diverted to the nearest city and he was rushed unconscious to hospital. What happened next shook the world.

With interviews almost entirely from those “in the room” this film pieces together this incredible story - James Bond meets Johnny English. World leaders pressure President Putin to allow Navalny to be airflifted to a hospital in Berlin experienced in saving the lives of those targetted for poisoning by the Kremlin’s security services. Investigators from Bellingcat prove that not only was Navalny poisoned by an FSB hit squad, but that they had been following him for several years, and developing new variants of the banned chemical weapon, novichok - first used against the Skripals in Salisbury.

This unbelievable tale of international espionage and incompetent assassins comes to a head with one of the would-be murderers confessing to his victim exactly how the poison was administered - applied to the seams of Navalny’s underpants.

Why is Alexei Navalny such a threat to one of the world’s most powerful men, how does he remain an irritant from inside a Russian jail, and how will this battle between two men - one with a team of assassins, the other armed only with a sense of humour, intrepid investigators, and a mastery of social media - play out, and what will that mean for the future of Russia and the rest of the world?

Told by those closest to Navalny, this film incorporates the humour of Navalny’s own YouTube videos to tell a tale worthy of John le Carre.

Producer Marcel Theroux on BBC Radio 4 Today

RUNTIME:
86 Minutes

PRODUCER:
Dimitri Collingridge
Marcel Theroux

DIRECTOR:
Jon Blair

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER:
Brian Woods
Dorothy Byrne

RELEASED:
2021

Awards

Reviews

"Horror and absurdity jostle for space in this fascinating documentary"
Phil Harrison - The Guardian

"Critics Choice: This documentary investigates the incident in August 2020 when Russia’s opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was taken ill during a flight to Moscow."
Gerard Gilbert - iNews

"Pick of the Day ★★★★"
Daily Mail

"Today's Best Documentary"
The Sun

"The future of Russian democracy is at stake and Navalny’s near-death experience is a warning to other dissidents."
Phil Harrison - The Observer

"Not only was Navalny poisoned by a Russian security service hit squad, but that they had been following him for years. ★★★★"
Mail on Sunday

"This documentary explores why Navalny is such a thorn in Putin’s side"
The Times

"In a film brimming with the banality of evil, the most absurd moment comes when Navalny tricks one of his alleged would-be assassins into outlining their modus operandi by pretending to be a Putin aide"
The Sunday Telegraph

"What to Watch: An extraordinary and bizarrely entertaining film exploring the operation of a state- sponsored murder programme in Russia"
Gerard O’Donovan - The Daily Telegraph

"The slick spy-film stylings of this documentary can’t hide the sinister repression and violence at the heart of its startling story"
Victoria Segal - The Sunday Times

"The film includes a remarkable recording of one of the alleged would-be assassins, Konstantin Kudryavtsev, complaining that “events went against us”"
Matthew Campbell - The Sunday Times

"When a mocking chuckle is almost indistinguishable from a death rattle, black humour is the only way to go."
Suzy Feay - The Financial Times

“Critics Choice: This film examines the 2020 poisoning of Navalny and a bungled plot that would be straight out of a Johnny English film, were it not so sinister.”
Daily Mail

“While world leaders struggled to get Navalny the treatment he needed, journalists began to piece together what had happened”
iNews

This documentary digs deep into the dark heart of Russian politics.
Metro

"This troubling documentary explores why Navalny is such a thorn in Putin’s side."
The Times

“The blue-eyed rival Putin can’t ‘disappear’”
Telegraph

“Pick of the Day: An investigation into the incident that took place in August 2020 when Russia’s opposition leader Alexei Navalny (left) was taken ill during a flight to Moscow, having been poisoned.”
Daily Express

“Delving into the Bond villain-esque life of Russia’s narcissist-in-chief, this documentary about the mid-air poisoning of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny is perfect for our post-truth world”
Stuart Jeffries - The Guardian

“It combined meticulous, often jaw-dropping evidence about his novichok-poisoned underpants with a lively sense of humour, echoing its protagonist’s jocular irreverence.”
Carol Midgley - The Times

“Channel 4's documentary put a black-humour spin on the surreal story of a pair of poisoned underpants”
Anita Singh - The Telegraph

“surprisingly playful with its dark, murderous subject matter.”
Barbara Speed - iNews

“The Man Putin Couldn’t Kill was surprisingly playful with its dark, murderous subject matter.”
Barbara Speed - iNews

“President Putin cheerily denies it all.”
Roland White - Daily Mail

"recounts Navalny's incredible story and reveals the stark reality of his life behind bars”
Alex Bellotti - Mirror

“Alexei Navalny’s humour after Novichok poisoning was ‘unnerving’, says friend”
Taz Ali - iNews