The Stage

BBC appoints entertainment production chief

Published Thursday 9 November 2006 at 17:45 by Liz Thomas

Jon Beazley is to take the top job in BBC entertainment production as controller, entertainment group for the BBC’s new multimedia production group, Vision Studios.

Karen Smith will take up the role of creative director in the department, which has a turnover of more than £50 million a year. The pair will report to BBC chief creative officer Peter Salmon and sit on the Vision Studios board.

Salmon said: “Jon is one of the UK’s most accomplished entertainment producers and commissioners, and Karen is one of the industry’s rising stars. Together they will be a double act that can help lead one of the entertainment world’s best teams that produces some of TV’s biggest hits - shows such as Strictly Come Dancing, Dragons’ Den and How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?

“They will also help drive our new push into multi-platform production and games, and they will build great ideas into entertainment formats that can flourish around the world, bringing income back to the BBC.”

The move means that Elaine Bedell is likely to take the ‘super-commissioner’ role in the genre. Beazley had been tipped as a leading contender but has opted to move into the production side.

He said: “To leave commissioning for production was a difficult choice but after five years in entertainment commissioning, BBC Vision’s Entertainment Studio presents enormously exciting opportunities. Entertainment’s current range of distinctive programming and the desire to initiate valuable content across all multimedia platforms was just too tempting.”

Beazley will take up his position before Christmas, while Smith starts in January.