Great Lives: Rob Newman on Franklin D Roosevelt

Comedian and writer Rob Newman is a long-time fan of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who he believes saved the United States just in time for the United States to save the world. When FDR came into office in 1933, at the height of the Great Depression, unemployment stood at more than 25 per cent and the Dust Bowl had decimated American agriculture in the Great Plains. A shrewd politician, he transformed federal government, the US financial system and the relationship between the American people and their president for ever. Rob and Matthew Parris are joined by historian David B Woolner to discuss FDR's personal triumphs, his hidden struggles and his international legacy