MG
Michael Grade yesterday pledged to rekindle the passion for programmes and programme makers which was the hallmark of Granada television at its height in the 1970s and 80s.
The new executive chairman of ITV was one of the leading industry figures to pay tribute to David Plowright, the former managing director and chairman of the Manchester-based ITV company.
Grade was speaking at a memorial tribute held for Plowright, who died in August 2006 aged 75.
Granada TV was taken over by Gerry Robinson and Charles Allen in 1992. They oversaw the process of merging and modernising the regional network into a near single operation.
Grade was a rival programme controller at LWT in the late 1970s, but later worked with Plowright when he was chief executive of Channel 4 and Plowright was deputy chairman.
Grade said: "As I embark on my second stint at ITV I am acutely aware that the spirit of David Plowright is as relevant today as it ever was.
"It is a much tougher world, but you have to believe what David believed - that the audience is not stupid; that quality and popularity are not mutually exclusive qualities. Be ahead of your audiences, not behind them.
"I am encouraging everyone at ITV - from programme-makers and broadband developers to commercial teams and the commissioners - to realise their ambitions."
He continued: "For all the financial pressures, the creative spirit still burns - and David's influence is still felt. I will do my best to rekindle his passion for programmes and programme-makers.
"The precious heritage of British public service broadcasting owes its reputation to a handful of broadcasting visionaries."
However, Grade was realistic too. "We will focus our energy on where we're going and on our achievements. Our task for 2007 is to keep bringing in the big audiences and advertisers' acclaim."
Plowright joined Granada as a journalist in 1957 and fostered a broad range of programmes, regional coverage, and investigative journalism, including World in Action, 7 Up, Disappearing World, drama documentaries and Brideshead Revisited.
It was a time when ITV had a monopoly of television advertising and multichannel television was yet to make an impact.
Source:
http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,,1999521,00.html
The new executive chairman of ITV was one of the leading industry figures to pay tribute to David Plowright, the former managing director and chairman of the Manchester-based ITV company.
Grade was speaking at a memorial tribute held for Plowright, who died in August 2006 aged 75.
Granada TV was taken over by Gerry Robinson and Charles Allen in 1992. They oversaw the process of merging and modernising the regional network into a near single operation.
Grade was a rival programme controller at LWT in the late 1970s, but later worked with Plowright when he was chief executive of Channel 4 and Plowright was deputy chairman.
Grade said: "As I embark on my second stint at ITV I am acutely aware that the spirit of David Plowright is as relevant today as it ever was.
"It is a much tougher world, but you have to believe what David believed - that the audience is not stupid; that quality and popularity are not mutually exclusive qualities. Be ahead of your audiences, not behind them.
"I am encouraging everyone at ITV - from programme-makers and broadband developers to commercial teams and the commissioners - to realise their ambitions."
He continued: "For all the financial pressures, the creative spirit still burns - and David's influence is still felt. I will do my best to rekindle his passion for programmes and programme-makers.
"The precious heritage of British public service broadcasting owes its reputation to a handful of broadcasting visionaries."
However, Grade was realistic too. "We will focus our energy on where we're going and on our achievements. Our task for 2007 is to keep bringing in the big audiences and advertisers' acclaim."
Plowright joined Granada as a journalist in 1957 and fostered a broad range of programmes, regional coverage, and investigative journalism, including World in Action, 7 Up, Disappearing World, drama documentaries and Brideshead Revisited.
It was a time when ITV had a monopoly of television advertising and multichannel television was yet to make an impact.
Source:
http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,,1999521,00.html