Kate Phillips has been appointed Controller, Entertainment Commissioning. The role replaces Mark Linsey, who is now Director of BBC Studios.
Phillips, who is currently Creative Director of Formats at BBC Worldwide, will be responsible for overseeing entertainment commissioning across all BBC Television channels, BBC iPlayer and BBC Three, maintaining the success of current shows as well as finding future hits. Her slate will include BBC One Saturday night family shows such as Strictly Come Dancing and the newly announced Let It Shine, panel shows including Have I Got News For You, Mock The Week and Would I Lie To You?, factual entertainment commissions such as The Apprentice, Dragons’ Den and Top Gear, and events including Children in Need and Eurovision Song Contest.
Charlotte Moore, Controller of TV Channels and BBC iPlayer, says: “Kate Phillips brings an enormous wealth of experience and a fresh, dynamic approach, which makes her perfectly placed to lead BBC entertainment commissioning into the future. Having worked across channels and most recently for BBC Worldwide where she has overseen formats across the globe, she has entertainment running through her veins and I'm very excited about her ambition to create distinctive, game-changing hits across the whole of the BBC portfolio. I would also like to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to Alan Tyler for his commitment and passion while covering the role in an acting capacity for the last eight months.”
Kate Phillips says: “The BBC has some of the biggest entertainment brands in the world, and close collaboration with our creative community, containing the world's leading producers, is the key to building that slate. Entertainment matters to our audiences and will always be at the heart of the BBC. Helping to create stand-out content that viewers, producers and the BBC can be proud of will always be my goal.”
In her role at BBC Worldwide, Phillips has responsibility for an extensive formats catalogue of more than 200 titles, including popular entertainment formats such as Top Gear, Strictly Come Dancing, The Great British Bake Off and The Great British Sewing Bee, alongside scripted formats Luther and The Office.
Prior to joining BBC Worldwide, Kate worked as the Channel Executive for BBC One and BBC Three, working closely with the Controllers to oversee all editorial content on both channels, managing early development of commissions, liaising with scheduling, budgeting, marketing, press and social media planning and strategy.
She takes up her new role on Monday 5 September.
