Channel 4 has appointed Geoff Cooper as its new chair, bringing more than three decades of board-level experience – including his current role as chair of AO World – to the broadcaster.
As well as AO, Cooper has chaired Dunelm, Card Factory, Brakes and Bourne Leisure and served as a non-executive director at Informa and Abbey National.
His executive career includes nearly ten years as CEO at Travis Perkins plc and as deputy chief executive at Alliance UniChem plc, having previously been its group finance director. He has also been an adviser to senior executives, private equity, venture capital and start-up businesses, and chaired a major trade association.
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The appointment — for a three-year term — has been approved by the secretary of state for culture, media and sport, Lisa Nandy MP.
She said: “Channel 4 is a treasured national institution with a track record of creating cutting-edge television which reflects Britain in all its diversity. I look forward to seeing Geoff Cooper help Channel 4 continue to provide top quality programmes and adapt to the changing media landscape.”
Ofcom chair Lord Grade added: “Geoff Cooper’s appointment follows an exhaustive and competitive recruitment process and he demonstrated the stand-out qualities needed to steer Channel 4 to a sustainable future.”
Geoff Cooper said: “I am delighted to be appointed as Chair of Channel 4 and to be involved in its continued success as a significant influence on the nation’s society, culture, creative industries and wider economy.
“Channel 4’s people, partners in the independent production sector and wider media landscape, and viewers are vital in representing unheard voices, challenging with purpose and reinventing entertainment, and I look forward to serving all of them.”
Jonathan Allan, interim CEO of Channel 4, hailed Cooper’s board-level experience and “proven commercial acumen”.
“As a publicly owned but commercially funded company, his fresh insights and new perspectives will be invaluable as we look to the next phase in Channel 4’s evolution.
“I also want to thank Dawn Airey for her outstanding leadership and huge support as interim chair since April. This has been Dawn’s second spell as Interim Chair and we owe her a huge debt of gratitude as she returns to her important role as a brilliant non-executive director.”
