Northwest Vision and Media, create the bigger picture
Day Time Just Got Better
DAYTIME TV has become a key battleground in recent
years, with broadcasters desperate to grab all-important ratings to
help set them up for later, peak time viewing. And playing her part
in the drama is Sumi Connock.
Sumi is the BBC’s only commissioning editor
for Daytime and Early Peak to be found outside of London. Working
from the BBC’s Oxford Road base in Manchester, it’s her
job to make sure the Northwest gets a greater slice of the action.
And so far, she’s certainly making a great impression.
“My brief was to bring entertainment shows with peak time
ambition into Daytime, and I think several of the shows we’re
producing do exactly that,” says Sumi - who has now been
named December’s Crew of the Month by Northwest Vision and
Media, which works on behalf of the region’s TV, film, radio
and digital content industries.
The accolade is just the latest in a long line for Cheshire-born
Sumi, who started her TV career back in 1995 with a stint as a
runner on The Big Breakfast.
“I did the usual thing, lots of contracts as a runner, for
productions like Gladiators and Blind Date. Then
gradually I got my first researchers break, courtesy of Andi
Peters, and became a researcher on programmes like An Audience
With The Spice Girls,” she explains.
After working for LWT and MTV, Sumi’s career took a huge leap
forward when she joined Tiger Aspect to pilot and eventually series
produce on Street Mate, with Davina McCall. The programme
went to three series, filming everywhere from Dundee to Bali.
“That was a fantastic experience for me,” says Sumi,
who by then had cemented her commitment to entertainment.
Sumi returned to MTV three years later as Executive Producer, on
shows such as Select, Hitlist and the
controversial, worldwide MTV hit Dirty Sanchez, working
with the stable of talent which at that time included Cat Deeley,
Zane Lowe, Edith Bowman and Russell Brand. She produced on five of
the MTV Europe Music Awards, and during her role as
Assistant Director of Programmes in 2003, MTV won the Digital
Channel of the Year Award at the Edinburgh International Television
Festival. Shortly afterwards, the call came from the BBC.
“I came to the BBC in November 2003,” says Sumi, who at
the time was based in London, with husband Alex, Chief Executive of
indie Ten Alps. “We both decided that a move back to Cheshire
would mean not only a better quality of life but also some great
creative opportunities in Manchester. Plus we had a six- month-old
daughter, so the time felt right,” she says.
A move to BBC Manchester therefore followed, and Sumi’s role
as Executive Producer for Entertainment allowed her to forge a
greater working relationship between the London team and their
northern counterparts.
“I wanted to do a lot more studio work out of Manchester,
because even though we already had great shows such as
Mastermind and A Question of Sport produced here,
there was room for so much more to be done,” she says. And so
much more was soon done, with shows like Sudo-Q and Graham
Norton’s The Big Finish being developed in
Manchester.
In January 2007, Sumi became Commissioner for Entertainment.
“It all sort of came out of the blue for me,” she
admits. “I was really enjoying my job as exec producer for
entertainment, but I thought it would be really interesting to see
the commissioning side of things, too.
“Commissioning is what you make it, you can be as hands on as
you want to be – and I’m very hands on!” she
says. “I didn’t want to be removed from the
programme-making side of things, and so far I’ve been able to
keep my hand in on that area.
“The Daytime team are fantastic and even though I’m
based in Manchester and they are in London, I very much feel a part
of the team. I go to London once or twice a week, but predominantly
my work is in Manchester and I encourage people to come and see me
here.”
On a typical day, Sumi spends time responding to emails and
pitches, attending run-throughs of potential future formats and
keeping an eye on all current productions. Plus there are all the
viewings of forthcoming shows.
“There’s certainly are a lot of viewings!” she
says. “Most series we commission are high volume –
minimum 20 episodes - and the commissioners are the last port of
call before transmission, so it’s an essential part of the
job.”
Negotiating with talent is also part of Sumi’s remit, as well
as coming up with ideas about who that talent should be. This year
she even brought Donny Osmond to Daytime.
“We were in our weekly routine and discussing names for a new
gameshow called Identity. One of the team suggested Donny
Osmond and we all agreed he’d be brilliant and perfect for
our audience,” says Sumi, who immediately called
Donny’s agent.
“I was sitting at my desk in Manchester and was told Donny
was flying home to the States the following morning, so I jumped
into my car, headed down to London, and within a few hours I was
telling him all about the show, which was kind of
surreal.”
Another of her current projects is Food Poker –
which does exactly what it says on the tin. “A group of chefs
play poker with a twist, as all the cards are ingredients which
must be used to pitch and cook a mouth-watering dish. It’s a
simple format, but good fun and the chefs are all genuinely very
competitive,” she says.
She was also responsible for Brian Conley’s new game show,
Dirty Rotten Cheater, and oversees Strictly It Takes
Two.
Shine North’s new panel show, What Are You Like, is
due to air this winter, and she has also been working with Ricky
Tomlinson on a one-off production. “Working with such
fantastic Northwest talent is a joy for me,” says Sumi, who
admits her workload has increased since her promotion. But she
wouldn’t have it any other way.
Features of the Month
- December 2007
