DLT hires BBC comedy veteran

DLT Entertainment has appointed a long-serving BBC comedy exec to the new role of executive editor as it seeks to expand its production business and move into factual entertainment formats.

Jon Mountague joins the transatlantic prodco best known for long-running BBC sitcom My Family, which the pubcaster cancelled earlier this year after 11 years on BBC1.

Mountague, who joined the Beeb as a producer 10 years ago and became executive producer and head of BBC Comedy North, took up his new post at DLT this month.

His credits include Johnny Vegas comedy Ideal (which the BBC also axed this year after seven seasons) and We Are Klang for BBC3. He began his TV career at Ginger Productions, working on TFI Friday series and has also done stints at Channel 5, TalkbackThames and Mentorn.

Mountague will report to DLT president Don Taffner Jr and is charged with growing DLT’s out-of-London production interests in a new, Manchester-based division, focusing primarily on single- and multi-camera scripted comedy. He will also develop factual entertainment formats.

“Narrative comedy in The UK is enjoying a renaissance with Sky, ITV, BBC, Channel 4, UKTV, and Comedy Central all commissioning programmes,” said Taffner. “This appointment and a few others we will be announcing shortly, will permit us to develop programmes to the various tastes of the broadcasters and their viewers.”

Montague is the second addition to the DLT team in recent months. In May, the company hired ITV Studios comedy producer Rohan Acharya for a newly created producer role at its London office. The firm took on its first UK-based sales and acquisitions exec, Annabel Laister, in March.