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Beverley McGarvey appointed TEN Programming Chief

TEN's Acting Chief Programming Officer Beverley McGarvey is appointed into the job permanently.

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TEN has appointed Beverley McGarvey as its new Chief Programming Officer, effective immediately.

McGarvey has been Acting Chief Programming Officer following the departure of David Mott in August. She joined as Network Head of Programming in 2006, with duties in operational components, development, acquisitions and looking after TEN’s on-air look and feel, plus scheduling, publicity, marketing and promotions functions.

TEN CEO James Warburton, said: “We are delighted to appoint Beverley to her new role.

“Beverley is an outstanding television executive. Her creativity, strategic thinking and programming and scheduling skills will be invaluable in the renewal of our creative content.”

Prior to joining TEN, Irish-born McGarvey spent two years as Director of Programming at TV3 NZ and four years as Head of Program Scheduling and Promotions for TV3 Ireland (including when she bought All Saints and turned it from a daytime to primetime hit). She has also worked for ITV’s Meridian Television in Southhampton and holds an honours degree in media studies from the University of Ulster, Coleraine, in Northern Ireland.

At MIPCOM in Cannes recently she received a Content Trendsetters Award. Speaking at an Acquisition Superpanel at MIPCOM she noted that American and British content plays very well in Australia and that TEN was looking at format (acquisitions) such as drama with an edge.

“For the multi’s we’re looking at things that are a little bit different …..we have very specific requirements for those channels,” she said.

“At the minute we’re looking for entertainment / comedy generally across all the channels.”

Asked what issues were facing Australian broadcasters she outlined, “We are obligated to meet lots of Australian content which tends to work very well. Australians like to see Australian stories.

“But production costs are rising, audiences are fragmenting,  and that’s obviously the fundamental problem and getting the balance right of Australian content, acquired content and monetising it…… It’s a relatively tough market at the moment for a range of issues but linear TV is probably the most important thing that is changing and shifting and we just have to make sure that we future-proof our business.”

McGarvey becomes the only female in such a senior Programming role in commercial television (ABC has previously had a female Programmer in Marena Manzoufas whilst Jane Roscoe remains SBS Network Programmer).

TEN is yet to announce any new Head of Programming.

25 Responses

  1. All the best Bev!

    Hopeful management allow you to give Ten an identity and take risks as i fear trying to emulate the others will result in another year like this one.

  2. I just heard on 3AW this morning that Ten has once again re-shuffled its primetime shows. The Simpsons will be switching from Eleven back to the main channel seven nights a week, and will air at 18:00-18:30. Then the Project will air between 18:30-19:30, putting it in direct competition with the current affairs programs and ABC News.

  3. @squareyes – LOL. Not her job but I’d have a crack at devising the weekly schedule. I even have my own
    dartboard and an analogue clock that doesn’t have any numbers on it.

    (Oops, I seem to have accidentally replaced Breakfast with cartoons…)

  8. She sounds very good at corporate lingo but will she be any good at giving viewers what they want to watch? Time will tell.
    The problem with Ten as I see it, is they’ve lost touch with the Australian public. We are all creatures of habit and if given consistent quality programming in a regular time slot we will probably tune in. At the moment I have no idea when Ten screens any of it’s shows. If I know a certain show that I like is on a particular day and time then I well re-arrange my schedule so I’m home to watch it. I think viewers have lost faith in Ten that any show they watched one week will be in the same time slot the following week and so don’t bother with them.

  9. Bev, please bring Neighbours back to the main network where it belongs; but, if you’re ashamed of it and all the success it’s had over the years, then just axe it. I mean, why would anyone be interested in watching a show that the network itself is obviously trying to distance itself from?

  10. @fairdinkum Simpsons at 6, Neighbours back on 10 at 6.30 and Project at 7.00pm in my opinion is a bad idea.

    Leave them the 6 – 7 lineup how it is now I am loving The Project then Modern Family. Neighbours IMO is utter trash. If people want to watch it they can find it on Ch 11. No one watched it when it was on Ch 10 before so why would they bother now? Simpsons also has well and truely had it’s day.

  11. Well good luck Beverly – sound like being handed the poisoned chalice, but someone has to do it.

    PS: David, when you put up a poll, e.g. the one re 7’s new programs, how about a “Never Heard of any of them” category – which I would tick on the current poll.

    1. Networks structure roles differently. But it’s fair to say one role heads up a network’s direction and content while another oversees scheduling. For instance Nine has a Director of TV and another in charge of Programming. These are not uncommon.

  15. What is the difference (apart perhaps from salary) between a Chief Programming Officer and a Head of Programming ? Sounds like the same thing to me.

    I wish Ten would get a new on air look and feel.

  19. @Fairdinkum,

    No. That’s not the way forward, or a long term solution. Leave The Project where it is.

    Good luck to Beverley, but with everyone seeming to be jumping ship from TEN and morale (especially after the latest round of news budget cuts) at an all time low, it will be a hard slog.

  20. Well she is good at the corporate speak let’s hope she is as good at programming. i.e Simpsons at 6, Neighbours back on 10 at 6.30 and Project at 7.00pm where they all belong. And buy some Sport!

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