Children’s TV industry legend Theresa Plummer-Andrews dies aged 77

Theresa Plummer-Andrews, the legendary international children’s TV industry veteran, has died aged 77.

Theresa Plummer-Andrews

Plummer-Andrews, a hugely respected and much-loved character in the industry with an unrivalled instinct for what children wanted to watch, died on August 31 after a short illness.

During almost 20 years at the BBC, between 1986 and 2004, Plummer-Andrews made an indelible mark on the international children’s content business as head of acquisitions and copros in the children’s department during a period of major growth and change.

Tributes to Plummer-Andrews, described as “the grand dame of children’s television,” have been made on social media as the industry reacts to the loss of a hugely influential figure.

During her time at the Beeb, Plummer-Andrews was an exec producer on hit series such as Bob the Builder, Noddy, The Animals of Farthing Wood, Fireman Sam and Postman Pat.

Never one to mince her words and famed for her quick decision-making, she would often shoot from the hip when discussing the rights and wrongs of an industry about which she was incredibly passionate.

Whether it was describing brand managers as “a pain in the arse” at a C21 conference in 2003, following the rise of Teletubbies, or her often withering assessment of sub-par animated programming, she could always be relied on for a strong opinion and was renowned for her complete dedication to her role.

Plummer-Andrews’ extensive expertise remained in high demand after she left the BBC in 2004. She went on to set up her own consultancy firm, Plum Trees TV, working on series such as Elias: The Little Rescue Boat and Cyber Group Studios’ preschool series Zou.

She was also a non-executive director at Indian animation studio DQ Entertainment between 2007 and 2014, which included a role as associate producer on two seasons of The Jungle Book series.

Her entertainment career began when she started out as a theatrical agent working with the likes of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor before moving into television in the 1970s on the live-action series Elephant Boy.

She went on to work for Portman Productions’ distribution arm, Global Television, working with clients including ABC Australia and TVNZ. In 1981 she headed up international activities at ITV’s TVS before taking on overall buying responsibility for ITV kids shows and then moving to the BBC.

George McGhee, the former controller of programme acquisitions at the BBC and a close friend of Plummer-Andrews, told C21 she was “the most loyal friend you could have, through thick and thin. People didn’t knock her because they knew how much she knew the business.”

News of Plummer-Andrews’ passing comes after the industry suffered another huge loss following the death of Linda Kahn, another children’s TV veteran, earlier this week, as reported by Animation Magazine.