Brought on board as Labour's director of communications under Neil Kinnock, the "master of spin" soon embarked on a political career - finding the safe Labour seat of Hartlepool in 1990, which propelled him into the Commons in 1992.

However, his efforts to make new Labour electable were not rewarded with admiration from his colleagues. Tony Blair, aware of his close ally's cool relations with the party, said his job would not be finished until the party had "learned to love" Peter.

After Labour's landslide victory, Mandelson soon found himself being brought into the heart of the new Labour government - rewarded for his efforts by Blair with the key post of minister for the cabinet office with responsibility for the millennium dome - which, Blair hoped would be the "first line, of the first paragraph" of Labour's next election manifesto.

However, some within the party feared that Mandelson's wide brief was damaging the party and he was soon promoted to the post of trade and industry secretary - Peter had got what one Labour insider dubbed a "proper job".

But after just five months in post, Mandelson found himself at the centre of allegations concerning a £373,000 loan from the controversial former paymaster general Geoffrey Robinson. Within days of the story breaking, Mandy's resignation was demanded. The king of spin had failed to spin himself out of trouble - an exact replica of recent events.

Soon after the political obituaries were fish and chip wrappers, Mandelson was already being touted as one to watch in a coming reshuffle. After less than a year in the wilderness, Mandelson was back - humbled, with the lower-ranking Northern Ireland secretary's post.

Whilst Ulster's hardnosed politicians viewed Mandelson - not "openly gay", but "gay openly" - with a degree of scepticism, he soon won over some of the key players for his mastery of backroom fixing and behind-the-scenes negotiations.

After the unconventional style of Mo Mowlam, Mandelson represented a decisive, businesslike and efficient alternative - unencumbered by the claims of bias levelled at his predecessor.Today Mandelson's meteoric rise was halted. It will not recommence.