The director of television at UK pubcaster the BBC has claimed the notion that US dramas like Breaking Bad and Mad Men are superior to British series is an argument “driven by box-set consumers”. In a blog post, Cohen said dramas originating at the BBC and the wider British television sector should be saluted by […]
BBC Three controller Zai Bennett is leaving the UK pubcaster to become director of Sky Atlantic. The news comes after the BBC announced that youth-skewing BBC Three will move to an online-only service. Bennett joined the BBC in 2011 and as boss of youth-skewed BBC Three has overseen shows including The Call Centre, Life And […]
The BBC’s director of television has warned arts and culture channel BBC Four could go the same way as younger-skewing BBC Three if budgets continue to tighten. Yesterday morning, the British pubcaster confirmed rumours it would shutter BBC Three in autumn 2015 following a series of cost-saving measures. Hours later, Danny Cohen admitted BBC Four […]
The BBC has named Adam Barker as acting controller, BBC Two and BBC Four. BBC director of television Danny Cohen named Barker as acting controller of the two channels following Janice Hadlow’s move to become controller, special projects and seasons. Barker, who is currently editorial executive for the two channels, will take up his new […]
Janice Hadlow has stepped down as controller of UK channels BBC Two and BBC Four. Having run two of the public broadcaster’s channels, Hadlow will move into a newly created role as controller, special projects and seasons. The BBC said that in that position Hadlow will develop “robust” returning formats for early evening television, ranging […]
The BBC’s controller of comedy production Mark Freeland has been promoted to a new role overseeing in-house production for drama, entertainment and comedy. Freeland in part replaces the departing BBC chief creative officer Pat Younge, with Natalie Humphreys recently appointed controller, factual production, to take on Younge’s other previous duties at the UK pubcaster. In […]
BBC director of television Danny Cohen is set to hire a controller of iPlayer, in a bid to establish the BBC’s online catch-up service as a “fifth channel.” Announcing the newly created role at a Royal Television Society event last night, Cohen said he wanted to position the iPlayer in a similar way to the […]
Factual channel Discovery and UK public broadcaster the BBC have called time on their programming initiative. The production partnership has created iconic blue chip factual series including Life and Blue Planet and the end of the deal coincided with BBC Worldwide announcing it will invest in a wide range of BBC factual programming that it […]
The BBC’s entertainment commissioning chief Mark Linsey has been confirmed as its new deputy director of television. Linsey will add the role to his current duties as controller, entertainment commissioning. The new duties include becoming the BBC’s point person for its relationship with multichannel broadcaster UKTV, in which the BBC has a 50% stake. BBC […]
The BBC’s director of television Danny Cohen has scrapped the BBC Four controller that Richard Klein occupied before exiting for ITV. Speculation Cohen would axe the role has been mounting since Klein’s departure in May and the BBC today confirmed BBC Two controller Janice Hadlow (left) would take control of arts and culture-skewed Four. A […]
