GREGORY DYKE. Born 20 May 1947. Attended Hayes Grammar School; University of York, B.A. in politics. Two sons and two daughters. Had varied career, 1965-83 before being appointed editor in chief of TV-AM, 1983-84; director of programmes, TVS, 1984-87; director of programmes, 1987-91, deputy managing director, 1989-90, managing director and subsequently group chief executive, 1990-94, London Weekend Television; director, Channel Four Television, 1988-91; chair, ITV Council, 1991-94; director, BSkyB, since 1995; chair, Pearson Television, from 1995. Address: Pearson Television, Teddington Studios, Teddington Lock, Middlesex TW11 9NT, England.

 

See also British Production Companies; British Sky Broadcasting

 

 

   

Greg Dyke has been one of the most powerful leaders among the British independent television companies, having headed up TV-AM, Television South, and London Week-End Television. His 1995 departure from network television to become head of the television interests of the Pearson Group, and member of the board of the satellite-delivered television group British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB), signalled the switch of his considerable influence from mainstream television to the new multi-channel systems. To outsiders, it suggested that the satellite companies were buying a man who understood competitive scheduling and who could help them to take audiences from both ITV and BBC.

Greg Dyke's success in the industry proves that it is no longer necessary for top British television people to come from Oxbridge and start their careers in the BBC. Unlike most BBC executives, Dyke was a sixteen year old school leaver who had a varied career after leaving grammar school at age 16: he worked for various local papers, gained a politics degree at York University as a mature student, and became campaign organizer for Wandsworth Council of Community Relations.

His television career began when he joined The London Program in the 1970s, and rapidly rose to become producer of Weekend World and deputy editor of the London Program. In 1981 he was given command of his own creation, The Six o'Clock Show, an energetic magazine program fronted by Janet Street-Porter and Danny Baker. Greg Dyke proved to his production teams that he was an inspirational manager and able administrator.

Dyke's greatest single success was, almost single-handedly to save TV-AM. The 1981 franchised breakfast company was heading for bankruptcy when Dyke was called in to bring back its audience. Dyke took the ailing breakfast show down-market, signalling this move with the introduction of bingo numbers, horoscopes and a gormless puppet called Roland Rat. The ratings rose from 200,000 to 1.8 million in twelve months, and the eventual gain was twentyfold. Observers waited to see if the Independent Broadcasting Authority would complain about these down-market tactics, but no breath of criticism was heard from the upmarket portals of their Knightsbridge headquarters. Better ratings were regarded as more important than cultural qualities.

Any program controller who could build ratings was much in demand. Dyke eventually resigned from TV-AM over budget cuts, and was quickly snapped up by Television South as director of programs, from where he returned to LWT as director of programs, and then chief executive. Perhaps his most significant promotion was to replace his good friend and former colleague John Birt on the ITV Program Controllers' group. When Dyke rose to become chair of that vital group, he effectively orchestrated the ITV companies' scheduling against the BBC.

Dyke's significance lies partly in the fact that a skilled manipulator of good ratings can also become a shrewd and successful company manager. LWT's chairman Sir Christopher Bland sent Dyke off to Harvard for a three month management course. When he returned he showed that he was quite prepared to put business efficiency above his Labour Party principles, and over four years he made 690 staff redundant, with a lavish $45 million redundancy package. He claimed afterwards that to restructure completely a business for less than one year's profits was a good deal. One part of his changes involved transforming the South Bank Television Center into a profit center rather than a service organization. This move proved successful, and in 1995 no less than four different television organizations, the breakfast franchise GMGT, Carlton Television, Hatrick Productions and LWT itself all used the South Bank studios.

By 1993 Dyke was chief executive of London Weekend Television Holdings, chair of the ITV Association, and chair of ITV Sport. Under his command, LWT flourished as never before, with excellent programs like Blind Date and Beadle's About. But successful companies always risk the danger of being taken over unless they are protected by government regulation, as was the case for ITV companies. When the Conservatives abolished these restrictions in 1993, LWT was at risk. Granada swallowed LWT for $900 million in 1994 and Dyke resigned rather than work under Granada control. With $1.75 million dollars worth of share option, Dyke made a $12 million profit from the Granada bid.

Dyke is perhaps the outstanding ITV babyboomer; generous, perennially optimistic, and very widely experienced. His friends say he is motivated, streetwise and understands popular TV. His critics suggest that he is a lightweight, with a tendency to speak out quickly. Certainly his impact on ITV has been considerable. His move to Pearson and BSkyB illustrates clearly that the old ratings war between ITV and BBC is out of date; now terrestrial broadcasters will struggle together to protect their falling share of the market from the new mediums of cable and satellite programming.

-Andrew Quicke