John
Willis
Chief Executive and Tinopolis Group Creative Director
John Willis, who joined Mentorn and Tinopolis in November 2006,
is one of the best known figures in the television industry, with
high profile roles including Director of Programmes at Channel 4,
Managing Director of LWT and United Productions, Vice President of
National Programmes at WGBH and most recently the BBC's Director of
Factual and Learning.
John began his career at Yorkshire Television where he won a
string of awards for his hard-hitting documentary programmes such
as Johnny Go Home. He later became Controller of Documentaries and
Current Affairs, where he started the acclaimed documentary series
First Tuesday.
In 1988, he joined Channel 4 as Controller of Factual
Programmes, introducing new documentary stands like Cutting Edge,
True Stories and Secret History. Later promoted to Director of
Programmes he oversaw a number of successful programmes and films
in several genres.
Image © BAFTA/Ian Derry