Channel 4 announces new commissioning appointments

31 July 2019

 

Channel 4 has today announced several key senior appointments who will be based its new Nations and Regions offices.

The appointments come as part of its 4 All The UK strategy and include senior commissioning roles based at Channel 4’s National HQ in Leeds and its new Creative Hubs in Bristol and Glasgow.

Founder of Bristol-based Marble Films and former BBC Documentaries Executive Sacha Mirzoeff (Drugsland, KoKo The Human Gorilla, Wastemen, Protecting Our Foster Children) will become Factual Commissioning Editor and Head of Hub at Bristol. Gwawr Martha Lloyd (Keeping Faith, Bang, Hinterland and Hidden), currently drama commissioner at S4C and previously a producer at the BBC, will become Channel 4’s Commissioning Editor, Scripted, also based in Bristol.

Will Rowson, currently executive producer at True Vision, (Muslims Like Us, The World’s Busiest Waterway, Panorama, Famous Rich and in the Slums) and Harjeet Chhokar (Junior Doctors, Ambulance, MisFITS Like Us, How to Get a Council House, Secret Life of 4 & 5 Year Olds) will take up roles as Commissioning Editors, Factual, based in Leeds. And Deborah Dunnett (Love it or List It, Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas and Holiday of My Lifetime with Len Goodman), most recently Channel 4’s Nations and Regions Manager, becomes Commissioning Editor, Popular Factual, based in Glasgow.

The latest hires come after Jo Street was recently revealed as Channel 4’s new Head of Daytime, based in Glasgow, and follow previous appointments of Sinead Rocks as Channel 4’s Managing Director, Nations and Regions, Caroline Hollick as Head of Drama and Head of Sport Pete Andrews based in Leeds.

Channel 4’s Director of Programmes Ian Katz said: “It’s incredibly exciting to see our 4 All The UK strategy begin to take shape and I’m so pleased with the calibre and range of different talents we’ve appointed in our first wave of N&R hires.

“The latest appointments along with Caroline, Jo and Pete give a real sense of the creative firepower we will have in Leeds and across our Creative Hubs, and how the move will change the face of the channel.”

Channel 4’s 4 All The UK strategy aims to attract and develop talent from across the UK, both on and off-screen, and support the significant increase in the organisation’s Nations & Regions spend on creative content – from 35% to 50% of main channel UK commissions by 2023, worth up to £250m more in total.   When fully implemented, the 4 All the UK strategy will result in over 300 jobs being created in the Nations & Regions.

In addition to the senior commissioning editor roles announced today, Rebecca Holdsworth will become Channel 4’s Leeds-based as Commissioning Executive, Drama, where she’ll be joined by Victoria Roye who becomes the broadcaster’s Off Screen Talent Executive. Izzy Francke will join Channel 4 as a Creative Diversity Executive in Bristol.

Other Commissioning Editor roles based in Leeds, Bristol or Glasgow still yet to be filled cover a range of genres including Factual, Popular Factual, Entertainment, Daytime; News and Current Affairs. Other positions to be based in Channel 4’s new offices include an E4 Digital Executive; Comedy Digital Executive; Digital Executive; Creative Diversity Executive and several Factual and Popular Factual Digital Development Executives as well as programme co-ordinators and team assistants.

 

Leeds – National HQ

The National HQ in Leeds will have creative and digital departments at its heart.Commissioning departments represented in the new National HQ will include: Comedy, Daytime, Drama, Entertainment & Live Events, E4, Factual, Popular Factual and Sport. Commissioners from these departments will work with producers and talent across the UK to support the significant growth in Channel 4’s Nations & Regions content spend and create more opportunities for regional voices and talent on and off-screen.

Leeds will also be the home of Channel 4’s new Digital Creative Unit – a new department commissioning and producing digital content to reach audiences on social and digital platforms.  The Digital Creative Unit will work with departments across the organisation, and with independent producers, to support new digital talent and Channel 4’s investment in young-focussed content and audiences.

Additionally, the National HQ will also house other creative departments including the Pictures team, commissioning and creating images for All 4 and for external media.   There will also be a team supporting a new studio within the National HQ, and creative and digital roles from 4Creative, All 4, and the Listings team.

Commercially, Channel 4’s Indie Growth Fund will be based in the National HQ as it refocuses on supporting the 4 All the UK strategy through investing in growing Nations & Regions independent production companies.   There will also be roles from the Advertising Sales Operations team.

Leeds will be home to a range of key business support and operations personnel, supporting the delivery of Channel 4’s creative and commercial work.   The following departments will be represented: Audience Research & Insight, Business Affairs, Corporate Relations, Data Science, Finance, Human Resources, Information & Archives, Press & Publicity, Production Finance, Systems Delivery, Technology, Workspace.

Additionally, there will be some roles from our partner contractors – including the ITN team as part of the new Channel 4 News hub based in the National HQ.

Glasgow – Creative Hub

The new Creative Hub in Glasgow will be a home for key creative decision makers supporting Channel 4’s relationships with the production sector, particularly focused on genres with strengths in Scotland and Northern Ireland. 

Bristol – Creative Hub

The new Creative Hub in Bristol will be a base for key creative decision makers supporting Channel 4’s relationship with the production sector – with a particular focus on supporting genres strongly represented in the South West, Wales and Midlands.