Linsey to lead BBC Studios

The BBC has appointed its acting director of television to oversee production outfit BBC Studios, replacing the outgoing Peter Salmon.

BBC exec Mark Linsey

Salmon revealed he was leaving his role as director of BBC Studios in February to become chief creative officer at Endemol Shine Group.

He is now being replaced by Mark Linsey, who became acting BBC Television chief after Danny Cohen’s exit last year. He is also controller of entertainment commissioning, working across shows such as Strictly Come Dancing, and before that spent time at UK prodcos including Tiger Aspect and Talent TV.

BBC channels and iPlayer boss Charlotte Moore, who was promoted to her newly created role in January, will take on the director of TV position on an interim basis.

The pubcaster’s chief, Tony Hall, described Linsey as “an exceptional programme maker and a first-class leader who makes things happen and gets the very best out of those who work around him.

“That combination is vital if the BBC is to continue with the phenomenal run of critical and audience success we are seeing with our programme making.”

Peter Salmon is joining Endemol Shine

Linsey, who takes up the role immediately, added that he was “tremendously excited to be leading BBC Studios at such an important stage in its evolution.

“Programme making is the very heart of the BBC and, in BBC Studios, we have a world-class operation. I am delighted to be a part of it.”

Salmon took up the BBC Studios role in July last year as the pubcaster prepared to transform its in-house production unit into one that could compete for business on the open market.

He had already set out how the UK pubcaster’s proposed production arm would look, outlining the execs to oversee four genre divisions: scripted, factual, entertainment, music and events, and natural history.

The new outfit, announced by Hall in March 2014, is aimed at producing programming for broadcasters in the UK and abroad as part of its ‘compete and compare’ strategy.

BBC Studios will operate independently of BBC Television, with the pubcaster planning to establish the division as a commercial subsidiary, assuming it is approved during this year’s royal charter renewal process.

Linsey’s entertainment role was taken on an interim basis by Alan Tyler, who had been acting as the exec’s deputy over the last year.

Moore, meanwhile, will now be responsible for BBC Television pending further announcements over the next few weeks of a new structure “to simplify” the pubcaster, fueling speculation that the role of director of TV could be ultimately disbanded.

Earlier this year she became the creative, editorial and strategic lead for BBC1, BBC2, BBC4 and BBC iPlayer after the organisation shook up its senior TV management team. Following her promotion it was revealed that Kim Shillinglaw, the controller of BBC2 and BBC4, would leave the pubcaster.