ditor of BBC’s The One Show, Rob Unsworth has today been confirmed as the new Head of BBC Daytime and Early Peak Commissioning and will start his new role in the coming months.

Kate Phillips, BBC Director of Unscripted Content says: “After a highly competitive interview process I’m delighted that Rob will be the new Head of Daytime and Early Peak, leading a team of very talented commissioners. Rob is an award winning producer and creative leader with an excellent track record in creating a broad range of popular programming with an emphasis on daytime, consumer and factual. I look forward to him joining our other excellent Genre Heads in BBC Unscripted as we work together”.

Rob has been with the BBC since 1997, working on a plethora of programmes, including Watchdog, Blue Peter, and Rogue Traders, as well as working as a Senior Advisor in the Editorial Policy team. After a number of years running the BBC Studios Factual team in Salford – where he oversaw and developed a string of Daytime successes including Rip Off Britain and For Love or Money, and documentaries for BBC Three – he became Head of The One Show in March 2020, two weeks before Lockdown, facing the immediate challenge of keeping the popular show on air during a pandemic. In addition to doing so, over the same period, he launched Morning Live, which was an instant hit for BBC One.

Rob says: “I’m thrilled to be taking on such an exciting role right at the heart of the schedule. Daytime and Early Peak has an incredible mix of shows that have a real impact on people’s lives. I can’t wait to work with the rest of the brilliant commissioning team to build on its strongest brands, and also find the big new ideas that will lead us into its next chapter.”

Rob will report into Kate Phillips, the BBC’s Director of Unscripted Content, who is responsible for the overall commissioning strategy for the full range of Unscripted content across Entertainment, Factual, Arts & Classical Music and Daytime, Early-Peak & Events.

Daytime and Early Peak produces a high volume of shows across BBC One and BBC Two, creating high impact programmes with an emphasis on accessible and inclusive content across consumer, live, factual, factual entertainment, quiz, entertainment and drama.

BBC Daytime is home to breakout hits such as The Repair Shop, Great British Menu, Strictly It Takes Two, Antiques Road Trip, The One Show, Morning Live, Pointless and Richard Osman’s House of Games. Daytime has also generated dynamic factual shows which are hugely popular with viewers and bring new, underserved audiences to BBC One such as Scam Interceptors and Expert Witness.

Unsworth is replacing former Head of BBC Daytime and Early Peak Commissioning Carla-Maria Lawson. Lindsay Bradbury will continue to be Acting Head of Daytime in the interim.

Kate adds: “I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Lindsay for leading the Daytime commissioning team, she has done an excellent job announcing various new commissions and continuing to cement some of the BBC’s biggest brands at the heart of Daytime television.”