Jay Hunt became Chief Creative Officer (CCO) of Channel 4 and Executive Member of the Channel 4 Board in January 2011.
The newly created role of CCO combines Channel 4 Network’s commissioning and creative activities into a single cross-platform content division for the first time. Hunt has been responsible for a wide range of new and award winning programmes at 4, including The Undateables, Make Bradford British, Utopia, Mad Fat Diary, Richard III – King in the Car Park, The Snowman and the Snowdog and the hugely successful coverage of the 2012 Paralympics. Under Hunt’s leadership, in the last year Channel 4 has won five BAFTA television awards, 10 Royal Television Society programme awards and six Broadcast awards – as well as topping Broadcast’s Indie Survey as the best broadcaster to deal with, for the first time in six years.
Prior to joining Channel 4, Hunt was Controller, BBC One for two and a half years, winning the MGEITF Channel of the Year in 2008 and 2009. Jay’s commissions during this time include critically acclaimed shows such as Sherlock, Luther, Mrs Brown’s Boys, The Day the Immigrants Left and Bang Goes the Theory.
From joining the BBC as a researcher on Breakfast news in 1989, she worked on Newsnight and Panorama, and then went on to be the Editor of both the One O'Clock News and Six O'Clock News. In 2005 Hunt become Controller of BBC Daytime, where she strengthened the factual output with RTS Award winning shows like Through Hell and High Water and The Estate We’re In. She also launched a huge range of new programmes including Great British Menu, Heir Hunters, Real Rescues, Animal 24:7 and Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is, which continue to perform well with audiences.
As Director of Programmes at Five in 2008, she commissioned a number of successful returning features shows including Cowboy Builders, and Extreme Fishing with Robson Green.
