Biographies

Controller, BBC Radio 2 and
BBC 6 Music

Bob Shennan is Controller of Radio 2 and 6 Music.  

Bob was educated at the Royal Grammar School in Lancaster and at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and graduated with a degree in English Literature.

Bob started his career as a journalist for Hereward Radio.

He joined the BBC in 1987 and progressed to a variety of senior roles in BBC Sport including, from 1998 to 2000, the position of Head of BBC Sport.

In this role he was responsible for overseeing all sport on BBC One, BBC Two, BBC News 24, BBC national and local radio and the BBC's sport online.

In August 2000, Bob was appointed Controller of 5 Live and in September 2002, he launched 5 Live Sports Extra as Controller. During his tenure, 5 Live reached a record audience in 2002 of just under 7 million listeners.

In late 2004 Bob was given overall managerial responsibility for BBC Asian Network. He introduced an evolution process that saw the Network increase its budget, appoint a new management team and revise the station's schedule to complete its transition to a national digital network.

A lifelong Liverpool FC fan, Bob left the BBC in early 2008 to lead Channel Four Radio. Following his departure from the venture in October 2008, Bob was appointed Controller, Radio 2 and 6 Music in January 2009.

In February 2009, Bob was appointed as the Chairman of the Radio Academy, a registered charity dedicated to the encouragement, recognition and promotion of excellence in UK broadcasting and audio production.