An inside look at the real Rupert Murdoch

But, for all his formidable cultural presence, as a personality Rupert Murdoch can often seem like an enigma. So what is he really like? These exclusive clips from the BBC archive give some insight into the man, his quirks and his philosophy as he was when he was younger, in his late 30s, just getting a foothold on power in the Northern hemisphere. In 1968, he bought the UK newspaper The News of the World, which was his first British media acquisition after initially building up his business portfolio in his home country of Australia. Few at the time realised quite what a consequential move this purchase would turn out to be. In an interview following the acquisition, he explained to a reporter why he decided to buy shares in The News of the World – and also revealed that as a proprietor, he was quite happy to interfere in editorial control “if necessary”. It’s that willingness to interfere, among other things, that has made him such a controversial figure over the years.