Seven new RTS fellowships were awarded at a dinner held on 1 October at the House of Lords hosted by the Rt Hon The Lord Fowler, chairman of the RTS All Party Parliamentary Group.

The new fellows of the Society were: Tony Cohen, former CEO of FremantleMedia: Jane Featherstone, chief executive of Kudos Film and Television: Jeff Foulser, chairman of Sunset + Vine Productions: George Jesse Turner, the veteran cameraman whose credits include World In Action and the Seven Up sequence of documentaries: Alex Mahon, CEO of Shine Group: Nicola Shindler, founder of Red Production Company; and Sophie Turner Laing, managing director of content, BSkyB.

Among others attending the dinner were: RTS vice-presidents Colette Bowe, chairman of Ofcom, John Cresswell, CEO of Arqiva, Lorraine Heggessey, executive chairman of Boom Pictures, David Lynn, managing director & executive vice president, UK, Australia & Eastern Europe and International Content Distribution, Viacom International Media Networks, Ken MacQuarrie, director, BBC Scotland, and Stewart Purvis, professor of television journalism at City University.   

At the dinner RTS CEO Theresa Wise, who joined the Society in March, outlined her strategy for the RTS.

She emphasised how she intended to strengthen the RTS by connecting with young people more consistently, doing more to appreciate and encourage the RTS’s regional centres, building membership and creating a vibrant web presence.   

“We are going to do more for young people and around education,” said Wise. “It is very clear that people learning practical industry skills are not all going to go into traditional broadcasting or production…

“As television becomes an even more ubiquitous part of our lives – on mobile, on PCs and tablets - many of our young people will find their skills in demand in non-broadcast areas.

“I want to reflect that in our activities and patron base so that we are relevant and able to contribute to young people’s progress.”

This summer the RTS announced that all members would receive free membership of London’s Hospital Club.

Since unveiling the initiative membership had grown by 20%, said Wise.  

The RTS CEO praised the contributions of the Society’s patrons, many of whom were present at the dinner.

She said: “Talking of patrons we can’t do any of this without you – whether it takes the form of financial contributions, contributions in kind, use of your brains or a combination of all three.”

 

Report by Steve Clarke

Pictures by Paul Hampartsoumian

Download the RTS Fellowship Press Release