Peter Salmon, Lucinda Hicks to Lead Banijay U.K.

Banijay has set the revised executive structure for its U.K. business, following the recent acquisition of Endemol Shine Group (ESG), with Peter Salmon and Lucinda Hicks in top roles.

From September, former ESG Chief Creative Officer Peter Salmon will lead Banijay UK as executive chairman. Former territory COO Lucinda Hicks is taking up the post of CEO.

Moving forward, Salmon will oversee the U.K.’s portfolio of 25 unscripted and scripted production labels, with a focus on content and creativity, while Hicks will run the business’s day-to-day operations.

In their new roles, the pair will work in unison to devise and implement the country’s integration plans in order to combine the entities by the end of 2020.

Richard Johnston, the current CEO of Endemol Shine UK, will leave the business as a result of the restructuring.

Marco Bassetti, CEO of Banijay, commented: “The U.K. is now one of our biggest markets, with a plethora of multi-genre labels and an incredible catalog that has traveled the globe. With this scale, we needed robust leadership, which spanned both the creative narrative of the group, as well as the operational one. Already heavily engaged in the country’s business and tapped into much of its network, Peter and Lucinda were in a prime position to take the group through the next stage of its journey. Brimming with IP and some of the best minds in the business, I’ve no doubt Banijay U.K., with them at the helm, will continue to be at the epicenter of devising original and innovative brands, which get the world talking. I’ll finish by thanking Richard for his incredible dedication, commendable service, and significant hard work in putting the U.K. group and its labels in such great health.”

Salmon said: “It’s a great moment to land one of the biggest production jobs in the world. Having worked across our U.K. slate from a global perspective for nearly five years, I know how exciting the shows and producers are. In Banijay UK we have an unrivaled network of creative talent, a multi-regional footprint, first-class formats and a world-beating catalog—an incredible advantage moving forward.

“In Lucinda Hicks, I also have a terrific partner—bright, hard-working and a lot of fun. Together, we are dedicated to building an inclusive and ambitious operation, where our teams have the support, direction and leadership they need but also the autonomy and freedom necessary to deliver the best ideas on the planet. The future here is very bright and given our producers have really shone throughout lockdown—they’ve been clever, innovative and resilient—I’ve no doubt we can go on to do great things together.”

Hicks commented: “It’s great to be combining this tremendous talent, entrepreneurialism and IP under one roof. It has been a pleasure working with Richard over the last few years. The power of our brands and the appetite for them globally has made ESUK such an exciting place to be, which is now bolstered further with more creative leaders and amazing IP. I look forward to working with Peter to build a combined creative portfolio renowned for its standout, world-class titles, driving innovation and originality and being at the forefront of positive change in the industry.”