BBC Studios Productions seeks successor to outgoing CEO Ralph Lee
BBC Studios (BBCS) Productions is on the hunt for a new CEO after Ralph Lee announced his decision to leave the BBC’s commercial arm in April.
Ralph Lee
Lee will depart BBCS after almost six years with the business to pursue “a new challenge outside the organisation,” BBCS said.
The former Channel 4 deputy chief creative officer has presided over the production business’s output since being appointed director of content in 2018.
In 2022, he was made CEO of BBCS Productions the company created as a single content unit for its scripted, factual, global entertainment and kids and family productions, talent relationships and content investment.
The move saw him assume oversight of BBCS production labels and invested indies including House Productions, Lookout Point, Clerkenwell, Voltage TV, Sid Gentle Films and Firebird Pictures as well as BBCS international production operations in the US, France, India, Australia and the Nordics.
BBCS Productions include the original, returning and continuing multi-genre titles such as Strictly Come Dancing, Happy Valley, EastEnders, Doctor Who, Prehistoric Planet, Good Omens and The Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final.
It is also behind Fight The Power: How Hip Hop Changed The World, Inside Our Autistic Minds, Planet Earth III, The Coronation of King Charles III, Silent Witness and Black Ops.
During Lee’s tenure, BBCS Productions has seen its third-party commissions grow to almost 40% and the company now serves a host of customers including Apple TV+, Amazon, Netflix, Channel 4, UKTV, Discovery and Disney+.
His tenure has also seen the introduction of what BBCS calls an industry-leading culture and leadership initiative called The Pledge across all BBCS productions, in response to wider challenges within the industry.
This aims to empowers senior leaders to take responsibility for behaviour on their sets and to provide clarity and support its teams, both on and off-screen.
In 2020, Lee announced the creation of an inclusion rider, committing BBCS Productions to a minimum target of 20% of its teams on all new BBC and third-party UK commissions coming from a black, Asian, minority ethnic background, having a lived experience of a disability, or being from a low-income background.
Lee started his television career as a freelance researcher in 1993 before joining BBC Documentaries in 1997 as an assistant producer, later becoming a director. He returned to freelance production before joining Channel 4 in 2002.
Tom Fussell, CEO at BBCS, said: “Ralph’s leadership has been a gamechanger for our production business, taking BBC Studios to creative and award-winning heights in every genre, both domestically and internationally.
“His calm stewardship through and out of the Covid pandemic was invaluable and he’s attracted outstanding talent like Kate Ward, Rich Knight and Cecilia Persson to our organisation, whilst overseeing global expansion and growth among our production units, labels and invested indies.
“However, it’s the deeply personal approach and investment Ralph’s brought to our programme-making culture that will best sum up his legacy here. I want to thank him enormously for his contributions and wish him the best of luck in his next adventure.”
Lee added: “It’s been an absolute privilege to lead BBC Studios Productions for six fulfilling years however, after an incredibly busy but hugely successful 2023, I started to think about what was next for me professionally.
“As hard as it is to leave such an inspiring business and colleagues who are pioneers in their respective creative and craft fields, I feel now is the right time to explore other opportunities. I’d like to thank all the fantastic production teams across BBC Studios for making this such an enriching and rewarding experience.”
