New chairman for eOne

British businessman Allan Leighton has been named the new chairman and non-exec director of transatlantic producer and distributor Entertainment One (eOne).

The news comes after James Corsellis decided to step down as eOne’s chairman. He will, however, remain a non-executive director.

His successor is a former non-exec director of BSkyB and has also held roles as CEO of supermarket giant Asda and non-exec chairman of the Royal Mail in the UK.

He is currently the chairman of UK broadcast and broadband technology company Pace and CEO of the Danish jewellery company Pandora.

Corsellis said: “Allan brings a wealth of public market and business experience and we feel will be uniquely positioned to represent the interest of all shareholders as well as support the senior management team in this next stage of the Company’s evolution.”

Elsewhere, Patrice Theroux, an eOne board member, has decided to stand down to focus on eOne’s global film business, while Linda Robinson, who has had a legal career spanning more than 30 years, has been appointed as non-exec director at eOne.