Peter Salmon (born 15 May 1956
) is a British
television producer
A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of video production on a television show, television program. Some producers take more of an executive role, in that they conceive new programs and pitch them to the television net ...
and executive. He is Chief Creative Officer of global content creator, producer and distributor
Endemol Shine Group
Endemol Shine Group B.V. (stylized in all spaceless) was a Dutch production and distribution company of scripted and non-scripted content, responsible for programmes such as '' Big Brother'', ''Deal or No Deal'', '' The Money Drop'', ''Fear Fac ...
, leading the company’s creative direction globally and overseeing the Group’s UK business. Prior to taking his current role in April 2016, Salmon was Director of
BBC Studios
BBC Studios is a British content company. It is a commercial subsidiary of the BBC that was formed in April 2018 through the merger of the BBC's commercial production arm and the BBC's commercial international distribution arm, BBC Worldwide. ...
, the corporation's production arm, and before that held a number of senior BBC roles including Chief Creative Officer of
BBC Vision
BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...
, effectively overseeing all of
BBC television
BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...
's
in-house
Outsourcing is an agreement in which one company hires another company to be responsible for a planned or existing activity which otherwise is or could be carried out internally, i.e. in-house, and sometimes involves transferring employees and ...
programme production,
and Director of
BBC North
BBC North (Group) is an operational business division of the BBC.
It is also a brand that has been used by the BBC to mean:
*The large ''BBC North'' region, centred on Manchester, that was active from the late 1920s until 1968 and was based up ...
.
Early life and career
Born in
Burnley
Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...
,
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
, Peter Derek Salmon studied at
St Theodore's RC High School
Blessed Trinity Roman Catholic College is a coeducational Roman Catholic secondary school located in Burnley, Lancashire, England.
History
The school opened in 2006 as part of ambitious plan to replace all of the district's 11 to 16 schools, fun ...
in the town
and then the
University of Warwick
The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands (county), West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded i ...
and graduated in 1977 with a degree in
European literature
Western literature, also known as European literature, is the literature written in the context of Western culture in the languages of Europe, as well as several geographically or historically related languages such as Basque and Hungarian, and ...
.
He then spent six months working for the
Voluntary Service Overseas
Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) is a not-for-profit international development organization charity with a vision for "a fair world for everyone" and a mission to "create lasting change through volunteering". VSO delivers development impact throug ...
charity, as a teacher in
Sarawak
Sarawak (; ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the M ...
.
However, he had to return home sooner than expected when his father became ill with
lung cancer
Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...
,
and he worked for a time in factories in his native Burnley.
His father subsequently recovered, and Salmon obtained a job as a
British Government
ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd
, image = HM Government logo.svg
, image_size = 220px
, image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg
, image_size2 = 180px
, caption = Royal Arms
, date_es ...
press officer,
before going on, in 1978, to work as a junior reporter for the ''
Chatham News and Standard'' newspaper,
where he worked alongside
Martin Brunt, now crime correspondent of
Sky News
Sky News is a British free-to-air television news channel and organisation. Sky News is distributed via an English-language radio news service, and through online channels. It is owned by Sky Group, a division of Comcast. John Ryley is the hea ...
. He is a fan of
Burnley F.C.
Burnley Football Club () is an English association football club based in Burnley, Lancashire, that competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football, following relegation from the 2021–22 Premier League. Founded on 18 ...
[
]
Career
Initial BBC career
In 1981 Salmon joined the staff of the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
in London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
as one of six general trainees, alongside Kevin Lygo
Kevin Lygo (born 18 September 1957) is a British television Executive (management), executive, presently Director of Television at ITV Network, ITV.
Early life
Lygo is the son of Royal Navy officer Raymond Lygo. Educated at Cranbrook School, Ken ...
(now head of studios at ITV), multi-award-winning film-maker Peter Kosminsky
Peter Kosminsky (born 21 April 1956) is a British writer, director and producer. He has directed Hollywood movies such as ''White Oleander'' and television films like ''Warriors'', ''The Government Inspector (television drama), The Government In ...
and internet entrepreneur Dominic Cameron. In 1984 he was the director
Director may refer to:
Literature
* ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine
* ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker
* ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty
Music
* Director (band), an Irish rock band
* ''Di ...
of the first dramatic reconstruction to be featured on the crime series ''Crimewatch
''Crimewatch'' (formerly ''Crimewatch UK'') is a British television programme produced by the BBC, that reconstructs major unsolved crimes in order to gain information from the public which may assist in solving the case. The programme was or ...
'', and he later went on to produce the programme. He also worked on the children's magazine show ''Blue Peter
''Blue Peter'' is a British children's television entertainment programme created by John Hunter Blair. It is the longest-running children's TV show in the world, having been broadcast since October 1958. It was broadcast primarily from BBC Tel ...
'' and the current affairs Current affairs may refer to:
News
* Current Affairs (magazine), ''Current Affairs'' (magazine) a bimonthly magazine of culture and politics.
* Current affairs (news format): a genre of broadcast journalism
* Current Affairs, former name for Behi ...
series ''Newsnight
''Newsnight'' (or ''BBC Newsnight'') is BBC Two's news and current affairs programme, providing in-depth investigation and analysis of the stories behind the day's headlines. The programme is broadcast on weekdays at 22:30. and is also availa ...
''.
In 1989 he moved away from the central BBC in London to become the Head of Television Features at BBC Bristol
The BBC campus, Broadcasting House Bristol, is located on Whiteladies Road, Bristol. The first building to be occupied was 21/23 Whiteladies Road, which was built in 1852 and is a Grade II listed building, with four radio studios. It was formal ...
. There he oversaw over forty environmental documentaries
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in term ...
made by the BBC Natural History Unit
The BBC Studios Natural History Unit (NHU) is a department of BBC Studios that produces television, radio and online content with a natural history or wildlife theme. It is best known for its highly regarded nature documentaries, including '' ...
, and was also responsible for forging the BBC's relationship with Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
-based animation studio Aardman Animations
Aardman Animations Limited (also known as Aardman Studios, simply Aardman or Aardman Animation and stylised as AARDMAN as of 2022) is a British animation studio based in Bristol, England. It is known for films made using stop-motion and clay an ...
, becoming an executive producer
Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...
on the company's Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
-winning short film ''The Wrong Trousers
''The Wrong Trousers'' is a 1993 British stop-motion animated short film co-written and directed by Nick Park, featuring his characters Wallace and Gromit, and was produced by Aardman Animations in association with Wallace and Gromit Ltd., BBC ...
'' (1993).
Channel 4 and Granada
In 1993 he left the BBC to take up a position as Head of Factual Programmes at Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
, having been specifically identified as a "rising star" by the channel's Chief Executive, Michael Grade
Michael Ian Grade, Baron Grade of Yarmouth, (born 8 March 1943) is an English television executive and businessman. He has held a number of senior roles in television, including controller of BBC1 (1984–1986), chief executive of Channel 4 ( ...
. There he oversaw long-running documentary series such as ''Equinox
A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun crosses the Earth's equator, which is to say, appears directly above the equator, rather than north or south of the equator. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise "due east" and se ...
'' and '' Cutting Edge'', as well as his own commissions such as the controversial ''The Dying Rooms'' and ''The Red Light Zone'', although the latter was much-criticised as over-sensationalist and lacking serious journalistic content. However, during his time in charge of Channel 4's factual programmes, the department won several British Academy Television Awards
The BAFTA TV Awards, or British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the BAFTA. They have been awarded annually since 1955.
Background
The first-ever Awards, given in 1955, consisted of six categories. Until ...
, Royal Television Society Awards
The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen r ...
, International Emmys and two successive Prix Italia
The Prix Italia is an international Television, Radio-broadcasting and Web award. It was established in 1948 by RAI – Radiotelevisione Italiana (in 1948, RAI had the denomination RAI – Radio Audizioni Italiane) in Capri and is honoured with the ...
s.
During his time at Channel 4, Salmon was also responsible for overseeing the channel's annual Alternative Christmas Message
The alternative Christmas message is a message broadcast by Channel 4 since 1993, as a sometimes humorous and sometimes serious alternative to the traditional Royal Christmas Message.
Background
Beginning in 1993, Channel 4 broadcast an "alterna ...
, broadcast opposite Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...
's official message on BBC One and ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
every 25 December at 3pm. In 1994, Salmon attracted some criticism for choosing the controversial American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
civil rights campaigner Jesse Jackson
Jesse Louis Jackson (né Burns; born October 8, 1941) is an American political activist, Baptist minister, and politician. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988 and served as a shadow U.S. senator ...
to deliver the message.
He left Channel 4 in February 1996 to become Director of Programmes at Granada Television
ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was it ...
, one of the largest companies of the ITV network and one of the major providers of nationally-networked programming for the channel. During his time at Granada he oversaw successes such as the comedy drama
Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple co ...
''Cold Feet
Cold feet is a phrase that refers to a person not going through with an action, particularly one which requires long term commitment, due to fear, uncertainty, and doubt. A person is said to be "getting cold feet" when, after previously committin ...
'' (1997) and the docudrama
Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television and film, which features dramatized re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of documentary and drama and "a fact-based representation of real event".
Docudramas typic ...
'' Hillsborough'' (1996), although both of these had already been commissioned before he joined the company.
BBC One
In 1997 he left Granada after only twenty months to return to the BBC when the job of Controller of BBC One, the corporation's primary channel, became available. This vacancy had come as something of a surprise, resulting from Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
's sudden move to Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
after just a year in charge. Salmon took charge of BBC One in September 1997.
Salmon rejoined the BBC at a difficult time, when it was losing many senior executives such as Jackson to rival broadcasters. Responsible for a £652 million annual programming budget, Salmon commissioned several successful programmes, such as the drama series ''Clocking Off
''Clocking Off'' is a British television drama series which was broadcast on BBC One for four series from 2000 to 2003. It was produced for the BBC by the independent Red Production Company, and created by Paul Abbott.
It was effectively an ant ...
'' (2000–03) and the sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...
s ''Dinnerladies
Lunch lady, in Canada and the US, is a term for a woman who cooks and serves food in a school cafeteria. The equivalent term in the United Kingdom is dinner lady. The role is also sometimes known as cafeteria lady. Sometimes, a lunch lady also ...
'' (1998–2000) and ''My Family
''My Family'' is a British sitcom created and initially co-written by Fred Barron, which was produced by DLT Entertainment and Rude Boy Productions, and broadcast by BBC One for eleven series between 2000 and 2011, with Christmas specials broadc ...
'' (2000–2011).
However, prior to the arrival of new Director-General of the BBC
The director-general of the British Broadcasting Corporation is chief executive and (from 1994) editor-in-chief of the BBC.
The position was formerly appointed by the Board of Governors of the BBC (for the period of 1927 to 2007) and then the ...
Greg Dyke
Gregory Dyke (born 20 May 1947) is a British media executive, football administrator, journalist, and broadcaster. Since the 1960s, Dyke has had a long career in the UK in print and then broadcast journalism. He is credited with introducing ' ...
in 2000, BBC One had suffered from under-investment, and for three successive years of Salmon's time in charge the channel was criticised in the annual report of the Board of Governors of the BBC
The Board of Governors of the BBC was the governing body of the British Broadcasting Corporation. It consisted of twelve people who together regulated the BBC and represented the interests of the public. It existed from 1927 until it was replace ...
for its performance and output. Dyke himself criticised the channel directly during the 2000 Edinburgh International Television Festival
The Edinburgh International Television Festival is an annual media event held in the United Kingdom each August which brings together delegates from the television and digital world to debate the major issues facing the industry.
The Festival ...
, firstly claiming it "had to do better" while delivering the annual MacTaggart Lecture, and then later criticising the policy of building lightweight drama series such as ''Harbour Lights'' (1999–2000) and ''Sunburn'' (1999–2000) around former soap opera
A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...
stars. Salmon also found himself criticised in the media for rescheduling and cutting back on the annual number of editions of BBC One's flagship current affairs series ''Panorama
A panorama (formed from Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography, film, seismic images, or 3D modeling. The word was originally coined in ...
''. BBC One also saw its audience fall to record lows on several occasions during Salmon's period in charge.
Finally, on 13 September 2000, the BBC officially announced that Salmon was to leave BBC One to become the new Director of BBC Sport
BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC, providing national sports coverage for BBC television, radio and online. The BBC holds the television and radio UK broadcasting rights to several sports, broadcasting the sport live or alongside flag ...
. His successor was eventually confirmed as being Lorraine Heggessey
Lorraine Sylvia Heggessey (born 16 November 1956) is a British television producer and executive. From 2000 until 2005, she was the first woman to be Controller of BBC One, the primary television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation. ...
, who had been widely speculated as replacing Salmon even before his departure had been confirmed.
BBC Sport, Television Corporation and BBC Vision Productions
Salmon's new role saw the BBC's sports coverage across television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
, radio
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
and online
In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" or ...
services being brought together under a single head of department for the first time. Although the BBC lost the prestigious television rights to The Boat Race
The Boat Race is an annual set of rowing races between the Cambridge University Boat Club and the Oxford University Boat Club, traditionally rowed between open-weight eights on the River Thames in London, England. There are separate men's ...
in 2004 during Salmon's period in charge, the department was able to win back high-profile events such as the FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
(in 2001, after having previously lost the event to ITV in 1997), England football internationals (in 2001), and FA Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
highlights for ''Match of the Day
''Match of the Day'' (abbreviated to ''MOTD'') is a football highlights programme, typically broadcast on BBC One on Saturday nights, during the Premier League season. The show's current presenter is former England international striker Gary L ...
'' (2004). He also oversaw the development of interactive television
Interactive television is a form of media convergence, adding data services to traditional television technology. It has included on-demand delivery of content, online shopping, and viewer polls. Interactive TV is an example of how new information ...
coverage of the Wimbledon tennis championships
The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...
and the 2002 Commonwealth Games
The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002 were held in Manchester, England, from 25 July to 4 August, 2002. The 2002 Games were to be hosted in the United Kingdom to coin ...
, and was in charge of the BBC's coverage of the prestigious 2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
, 2004 UEFA European Football Championship
The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football competition contested by the men's national teams of UEFA member associations. The ...
and 2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
events. He was aided in these achievements by a large increase in the department's budget from Director-General Greg Dyke; in 2003 alone, BBC Sport was given a budget of £300 million.
In July 2005, he left the BBC to become the Chief Executive of the independent production company Television Corporation, producers of programmes such as ''The Hamburg Cell
The Hamburg cell (german: Hamburger Zelle) or Hamburg terror cell (german: Hamburger Terrorzelle) was, according to United States, U.S. and Germany, German intelligence agencies, a group of radical Islamists based in Hamburg, Germany, that inc ...
''. However, when Television Corporation was taken over by the Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
company Tinopolis
The Tinopolis Group is an international TV production and distribution group with businesses based in the UK and US. It produces over 4,500 hours of television annually for more than 200 UK and foreign broadcasters.
History
Llanelli, Wales, b ...
, Salmon left the organisation. He returned to the BBC in 2006 to become Chief Creative Officer of the new "BBC Vision Productions" set-up, overseeing all creative output from the BBC's in-house production centres.
In December 2008 he became the director of BBC North Group Division, and in May 2014 was appointed Director of BBC England.
Personal life
He is married to the actress Sarah Lancashire
Sarah-Jane Abigail Lancashire (born 10 October 1964) is an English actress from Oldham, England. She graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1986 and began her career in local theatre, whilst teaching drama classes at the Sal ...
. They have a son together. Salmon has three sons from a previous relationship, and Sarah has two sons from a previous marriage.
References
External links
BBC Press Office official biography
at bbc.co.uk
BBC Online, formerly known as BBCi, is the BBC's online service. It is a large network of websites including such high-profile sites as BBC News and BBC Sport, Sport, the on-demand video and radio services branded BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, t ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Salmon, Peter
1956 births
Living people
People from Burnley
BBC One controllers
Alumni of the University of Warwick
British television producers