Who is Anna Chapman? The story at the centre of Channel 4's Spy Next Door documentary
She fooled almost everyoneAnna Chapman is at the centre of a brand new crime documentary starting tonight on Channel 4.
Spy Next Door: The Anna Chapman Story examines how her life in London and New York became entangled in a major FBI counter-intelligence investigation.
The opening episode airs tonight and traces a case that moved remarkably quickly.
From glamorous and popular girl next door to a secret Russian spy, viewers will find themselves gripped as they learn of her extraordinary tale.
Here’s what we know.
Who is Anna Chapman?
Born Anna Vasil’yevna Kushchenko in Volgograd on 23 February 1982, Anna was the daughter of a maths teacher and a man described as a senior KGB official.
Her connection with Britain began after she met Alex Chapman at a London rave in 2001. They married soon afterwards, and she obtained a British passport and dual Russian-British citizenship.
The marriage ended in 2006 – but she kept his surname and her British passport.
Anna worked in finance while living in London and attended exclusive dinners and parties in Mayfair. She moved to New York in 2009, set up a property business and became a familiar face at fashionable Manhattan venues.
Her New York circle included restaurant owner Michel Bittan, whom she briefly dated. She was also photographed at an event with economist Nouriel Roubini, widely known for anticipating the 2008 financial crisis.
But behind the scenes, Anna was living a double life.
When was Anna Chapman arrested?
It turns out that Anna was secretly working for the SVR, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service as a sleeper cell. She was sending coded messages about political and financial circles straight back to Moscow.
But her cover was eventually blown.
Anna was arrested on 27 June 2010 by the FBI, alongside nine other alleged members of a Russian agent network. After pleading guilty to conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government, she spent 12 days in federal custody.
She and the nine others were then flown to Vienna for a historic spy swap. Anna and the others were exchanged for four people who had been imprisoned in Russia for working with Western intelligence.
Among them was Sergei Skripal, the former Russian military intelligence officer later targeted in the 2018 Salisbury Novichok poisoning.
Following the exchange, the British government revoked Anna’s citizenship.
What did the FBI claim about her activities?
The arrests followed Operation Ghost Stories, the FBI’s long-running investigation into Russia’s Illegals Programme. The FBI said Anna appeared on information supplied by Russian defector Colonel Alexander Poteyev and claimed agents monitored her after she established herself in New York.
According to the FBI’s account, Anna used an ad hoc wireless connection to pass encrypted material from her laptop to a Russian handler nearby. The agency claimed one transfer involved Anna working inside a Barnes & Noble café while the handler waited in a vehicle outside.
It also said she was tracked transmitting coded material while walking through popular department store Macy’s.
The FBI claimed it intercepted and decoded communications before interfering with Anna’s laptop connection when she encountered technical problems. An undercover agent posing as a Russian contact called Roman subsequently approached her and offered to help with the computer.
Anna became suspicious and bought a temporary mobile phone before calling her father. He was said to have advised her to take a false passport to a police station. She did so, and the FBI arrested her shortly afterwards.
What happened to Anna Chapman after the spy exchange?
Anna returned to Russia as a high-profile public figure. President Vladimir Putin welcomed all the agents home, while Anna subsequently built a lucrative career in television presenting, modelling and business.
She launched a fashion range and even became involved with Putin’s United Russia party. Anna’s work as a pro-Kremlin media personality has kept her in the public eye since the case.
When is Spy Next Door: The Anna Chapman Story on?
Spy Next Door: The Anna Chapman Story begins tonight (Wednesday August 12, 2026). The documentary starts at 9pm on Channel 4 and is the first of two parts.
The second episode follows at the same time tomorrow night (Thursday). The two-part mini series will also be available to stream on Channel 4’s online platform.
One thing is for sure, this will certainly make you think twice about your neighbours!
