He led a double life in the 1960s. He wore the mask of death in the 1970s. And he maintained his cover in the 1980s.

Agent Twister is the remarkable story behind one of the biggest scandals of the 1970s, told in full for the first time. Early November 1974, MP John Stonehouse, former star of Harold Wilson's government, goes missing in Miami and is believed to have drowned. His disappearance reveals the most incredible details of his life, including identity, business corruption, a love triangle, blackmail, mafia connections, and a decade-long career as a Soviet spy.

The public is captivated by this story, happily forgetting the strikes, IRA bombs, and rising prices making daily life difficult.

By Christmas Eve, Stonehouse is located in Melbourne, Australia, where he is suspected of being the other missing Englishman, Lord Lucan. The comic paranoia of the story is offset by claims of mental depression and his refusal to resign from Parliament, even when extradited back to the UK and facing charges at the Old Bailey.

For the first time, Agent Twister reveals the corporate crimes at the heart of Stonehouse's empire, the true extent of his decade-long conspiracy with powerful Soviets, and the political consequences of his actions. It is a scandal bigger than Profumo that remained hidden for thirty years, with three prime ministers – Wilson, Callaghan, and Thatcher – covering it up for very different reasons.

Written by the creators of the Channel Four documentary The Spy Who Died Twice, Agent Twister is the first impartial account that places this extraordinary scandal in its political context and reveals why John Stonehouse really disappeared.