Airey Exits as Five Restructures

LONDON: Channel 5’s new owner, Northern & Shell, has announced a restructure that sees the exit of Dawn Airey and Richard Woolfe, among others, and the elevation of Jeff Ford, with a number of cost-cutting measures to be put in place.

Richard Desmond, Northern & Shell’s chairman, took control of Channel 5 just over two weeks ago. The company says that it plans to invest £1.5 billion over the next five years toward program and content development. Airey, Channel 5’s chairman and CEO, has agreed to stay in her post for several months to oversee cost savings (likely to result in up to 80 job cuts), before the new investment program begins. Airey will then head to RTL Group, to take on a senior role, which has not yet been confirmed.

Also exiting the company are Richard Woolfe, channel controller; Charles Constable, director of strategy; and Sue Robertson, director of corporate affairs, who end their terms on August 31. Mark White, managing director; David Hockley, director of finance; Paul Chinnery, director of legal; and Natasha Adams, head of HR, will depart on October 31. Along with Airey, they will remain in post until this time in order to help Northern & Shell manage the change process.

Channel 5’s director of digital channels and acquisitions, Jeff Ford, takes on additional responsibility for the main channel, becoming program director for Five channels. Kelly Williams, who has been director of sales at Five for the past six years, will continue to lead the channel’s commercial team.

Airey said of the changes: “The day Five was sold, my job was done. I will be returning to the RTL Group but over the next few months will remain in post with a number of my senior colleagues to facilitate the integration of Five into Northern & Shell. I want to thank Richard, Charles, Sue, Mark, David, Paul and Natasha for the dedication and commitment that they have shown Five and the support they have given me over the years. They have all made a significant contribution to leading Five towards a successful future."

She added, "I love Five, its staff, its spirit and all we have achieved. I wish the channel, its team, Richard Desmond and Northern & Shell all the success they deserve."

Desmond commented: “Whilst I’m sorry to see Dawn move on, I’m thrilled that she’ll be in the mix to contribute to the various exciting plans we have and oversee the acquisition and development of brilliant new content.”