Menna Richards

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

was the Controller of

BBC Cymru Wales BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Wales. It is one of the four BBC national regions, alongside the BBC English Regions, BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Scotland. Established in 1964, BBC Cymru Wales is ...

from February 2000 to February 2011.

Biography

Born in

Maesteg Maesteg is a town and community in Bridgend County Borough, Wales. Maesteg lies at the northernmost end of the Llynfi Valley, close to the border with Neath Port Talbot. In 2011, Maesteg had a population of 20,612. The English translation of Mae ...

, Bridgend County Borough, Wales, Richards was educated at the town's Grammar School, and later at the

University of Wales, Aberystwyth , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

. Well-known for her contribution to broadcasting, her career began with BBC Wales as a broadcast journalist in 1976 and later as a reporter and producer for

HTV Wales ITV Wales and West, previously known as Harlech Television (HTV), was an ITV franchise area in the United Kingdom until 31 December 2013, licensed to a broadcaster by the regulator Ofcom. There is no channel, past or present, named "ITV Wales ...

in the current affairs department in 1983, including the Welsh language current affairs series, ''

Y Byd ar Bedwar ' ( Welsh for ''The World on Four'') is a Welsh-language current affairs television programme, which has broadcast on S4C since the channel was launched in November 1982. It is produced by ITV Cymru Wales. The programme's reporters have brou ...

''. She rose to become managing director of HTV Wales in 1997, before the company was taken over by

United News & Media UBM plc was a British business-to-business (B2B) events organiser headquartered in London, England, before its acquisition by Informa in 2018. It had a long history as a multinational media company. Its main focus was on B2B events, but its pr ...

. Richards rejoined BBC Wales as a Controller in February 2000 and retired in February 2011. It was revealed as part of the BBC's open policy in November 2009, that Richards salary per annum to August 2009 was £185,000, with total remuneration of £192,800. She was responsible for bringing series such as ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'', ''

Torchwood ''Torchwood'' is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. A spin-off of the 2005 revival of ''Doctor Who'', it aired from 2006 to 2011. The show shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing ...

'', ''

Merlin Merlin ( cy, Myrddin, kw, Marzhin, br, Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles. His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and le ...

'', ''

The Sarah Jane Adventures ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' is a British science fiction television programme that was produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies, and starring Elisabeth Sladen. The programme is a spin-off of the long-running BBC sc ...

'', '' Sherlock'' and ''

Upstairs Downstairs Upstairs Downstairs may refer to: Television *Upstairs, Downstairs (1971 TV series), ''Upstairs, Downstairs'' (1971 TV series), a British TV series broadcast on ITV from 1971 to 1975 *Upstairs Downstairs (2010 TV series), ''Upstairs Downstairs'' ...

'' to global TV screens. She was married to the TV presenter Patrick Hannan, who died in 2009, aged 68, following a short illness.

Honours

Richards was appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) in the

New Year Honours 2010 The New Year Honours 2010 were announced on 31 December 2009 in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Cook Islands, Barbados, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Saint Lucia, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Christopher and NevisSaint Christ ...

for her services to broadcasting. In the same year she was also appointed to the board of the Welsh National Opera. In addition, she was awarded a BAFTA in 2015 for Outstanding Contribution to Television.

References

External links

Menna Richards at BBC Info
{{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Menna Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Welsh-language television presenters Welsh-speaking journalists BBC executives Welsh journalists Welsh women journalists Welsh television presenters Welsh women television presenters Officers of the Order of the British Empire