Biographies

Managing Director of Content & Production, BBC Worldwide

Wayne Garvie is responsible for BBC Worldwide's content investment strategy, international production and live entertainment businesses.

Since joining in January 2006, Wayne has led BBC Worldwide's strategy to secure the best content, primarily through investing in individual productions, for its businesses to develop commercially around the world.

Under his direction, BBC Worldwide has also invested in some of the UK's best independent producers including Hardy Pictures, Clerkenwell Films, Baby Cow and Sprout Pictures, as well as startups Left Bank Pictures, Plain Vanilla and Big Talk.

Internationally, Wayne oversees BBC Worldwide's production activity, which creates local versions of British TV formats and generates new formats for export around the world.

Building on BBC Worldwide's first established studio in Los Angeles, Wayne has expanded the network to include wholly owned studios in New York, Paris and Mumbai, as well as joint venture production outfits in Sydney (Freehand) and Toronto (Temple Street). Local partnerships have also been established in Russia, Brazil and Argentina.

Before joining BBC Worldwide, Wayne was the BBC's Head of Entertainment Group. Wayne is credited with having transformed the department during his four years in the position.

He employed a new generation of creative leaders and a host of innovative new shows such as Strictly Come Dancing, Dragons' Den, Honey, We're Killing the Kids, Hardspell and The House Of Tiny Tearaways.

Before becoming Head of Entertainment Group in 2001, Wayne was Head of Entertainment and Features for BBC Manchester.

While in that role he developed the I Love... franchise and repositioned BBC Manchester as a key supplier of entertainment programmes for both the BBC and its commercial partners worldwide.

He joined BBC Manchester in August 1998 from Granada Television where he had worked in the Sports, Regional, Factual and Entertainment divisions before being appointed in 1996 as Director of Broadcasting, responsible for maintaining Britain's largest independent television franchise.

Wayne is the current Chair of the Royal Television Society, a trustee of the People's History Museum and holds a PhD in Economic and Social History. He is also Visiting Professor of Media at the University of Chester.