EXCLUSIVE: It’s been nearly eight months since Alex Mahon resigned as the CEO of Channel 4, but the UK network is finally closing in on its next boss.
Deadline hears that Mahon’s successor could be unveiled as early as this week after staff were told to expect an announcement before Christmas.
Two frontrunners have emerged: Jonathan Allan, Channel 4’s chief operating officer and interim CEO; and Emma Lloyd, Netflix’s vice president of partnerships EMEA. Others think another unknown candidate could still be in the mix.
Sources are divided on who will clinch the top job, which is in keeping with a tightly run process that has largely kept people guessing — even senior figures at Channel 4. “It’s been such a closely-guarded secret,” said one insider.
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Allan’s name has been in the mix since day one and he confirmed as much at the RTS Cambridge Convention, when he answered “yes” emphatically on stage to the question of whether he was running.
Lloyd’s name emerged for the first time in a Sky News article 10 days ago and has taken the industry by surprise. She has been with Netflix for the past four years and spent the previous 13 with Sky, rising up to chief business development officer.
Others left in the process are thought to come from outside the TV industry. Paramount UK chief Sarah Rose had been tipped for the role but she is exiting to run Prince William and Kate Middleton’s charitable foundation.
Geoff Cooper, who was appointed as Channel 4’s chair in September, has led the recruitment process with support from executive search firm Spencer Stuart. Deadline previously obtained a job spec, which said Channel 4‘s next chief executive will lead the UK broadcaster into the “most important phase” in its 42-year history.
The identity of Channel 4’s next CEO will likely be a talking point as the network hosts its annual drinks with suppliers tonight. Content boss Ian Katz, who has previously told staff his future is uncertain amid the changing of the guard, is expected to speak.
Meanwhile, in a sign of the UK TV industry’s circularity, Mahon has been touted as a potential replacement for Tim Davie as BBC director general. That job closes applications at the end of the month.
Channel 4 was approached for comment.
Max Goldbart contributed reporting