Donald Baverstock

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Donald Baverstock (January 18, 1924 – March 17, 1995) was a British television producer and executive. He initially worked for BBC Television in the famous Talks Department, where he was the Editor of the topical magazine programme Highlight and then co-devised and edited its more ambitious and better-remembered successor Tonight, which began in 1957.

Baverstock worked on Tonight until 1961, when he was promoted to be the BBC’s Assistant Controller of Programmes across the whole television service. He did not occupy this post for very long, however, as in early 1963 he succeeded his superior Stuart Hood to become the Controller of Programmes for BBC One, in anticipation of the launch of the station's companion BBC Two the following year. In the same year he requested Sydney Newman to develop a new Saturday evening show for BBC One which would later become Doctor Who.

However, soon after the launch of BBC Two in 1964, Controller Michael Peacock quickly began to run into difficulties, and BBC Director-General Hugh Carleton-Greene decided in 1965 that the two men would be better suited to running each other’s channels, and took the decision to swap them over.

However, Baverstock felt insulted that he was being asked to take what he saw as a demotion to the lesser channel, and refused to take up his new post, instead resigning from the BBC altogether. He subsequently became involved in the establishment of ITV northern franchise holders Yorkshire Television, becoming its first Director of Programmes and going on to oversee the creation of popular hits such as the soap opera Emmerdale Farm (1972), which still runs nationally to this day.

In 1957 Baverstock married Gillian Mary Blyton, daughter of British children's author Enid Blyton, at St James's Church, Piccadilly.

Preceded by Stuart Hood

Controller of BBC One 1963-1965

Succeeded by Michael Peacock