BBC poaches Bellamy from E4 as new controller of BBC Three

by Jennifer Whitehead, Brand Republic 05-Dec-05, 11:20

LONDON - The BBC has appointed E4 head Julian Bellamy as the new controller of BBC Three to replace Stuart Murphy, who quit to become creative director at 'Wife Swap' and 'Faking It' indie RDF Media in October.

It will be Bellamy's first role at the BBC. He has a long background with Channel 4, where he has been head of factual entertainment since February 2003. He added his E4 duties at the start of this year.

Bellamy's television career began producing and directing documentaries for 'Dispatches' for Channel 4, and ITV's 'The Big Story'. He then became editor of current affairs for Channel 4, where he commissioned shows including 'The Mark Thomas Comedy Product'.

He was also commissioning editor for 'Big Brother' from 2001, when the second series aired.

Jana Bennett, director of television at the BBC, said: "He has fantastic experience of building channels and brands in a multi-platform digital environment, a very strong creative background and terrific relations with talent and the production community."

BBC Three launched in February 2003 and is available on Freeview and other digital services. It was the home of shows including 'Little Britain', 'The Mighty Boosh' and 'Smoking Room'.

It recently reported its best weekly reach among all individuals in digital homes in peak time -- 9.4m or 25% of the available audience during October.

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