ITV confirms hiring of BBC head of drama Polly Hill
New heads of entertainment, factual entertainment and comedy entertainment have also been announced by the commercial broadcaster
ITV has confirmed that it has poached BBC controller of drama commissioning Polly Hill as its new head of drama.
As predicted by RadioTimes.com yesterday, the network announced today that it is hiring Hill, who has run BBC drama for less than a year after working as a senior executive at the Corporation for more than a decade.
Hill, who has overseen the final stages of dramas Doctor Foster, War and Peace and The Night Manager, said: “After 11 years at the BBC I am proud to be leaving it at the top of its game. ITV has always played a vital part in the landscape of British drama and shows such as Cracker, Prime Suspect and Band of Gold, had a huge influence on me and the drama I wanted to make. I am proud to be joining ITV and will lead the drama department into its next exciting chapter, making the very best popular drama, which will feel original, distinctive and authored. It’s a new journey for me and I can’t wait to start.”
Charlotte Moore, acting director of BBC Television added: "BBC Drama has been on extraordinary form over the last few years. Polly Hill has made a fantastic contribution and I wish her well for the future."
ITV has also announced that Optomen MD Sue Murphy will join the broadcaster as Head of Factual Entertainment. In additional Siobhan Greene will move from ITV Studios to become the commissioning team’s Head of Entertainment, and Peter Davey has been promoted to Head of Comedy Entertainment.
As part of the reshuffle orchestrated by new director of television Kevin Lygo, Angela Jain is to succeed Greene as Managing Director of ITV Studios Entertainment.
Lygo said: “A channel’s programming is only as good as the choices the commissioning teams make, and so it is vital to have the best people possible in these crucial positions.... I'm confident that as a team we can continue to build on the raft of shows that help to make ITV Britain's most popular commercial channel.”
