Cheryl Taylor
Zodiak Kids and Family Studio UK, part of Banijay Kids and Family, announced that Cheryl Taylor will be joining the production outfit this month as Creative Director. She will be transitioning into the role of outgoing Creative Director Steven Andrew, who is retiring from the industry. They will be working together at Zodiak until the spring to ensure a seamless transition. She will be jointly reporting into Banijay Kids and Family CEO, Benoit Di Sabatino, and Zodiak Kids and Family UK COO, Gwen Hughes.
Taylor has had a long and prestigious career in children’s and comedy television, holding the role of Head of Content BBC Children’s until last year. She was responsible for commissioning 500 hours of multi-genre content per annum across CBeebies, CBBC and BBC iPlayer. Prior to this, she held various commissioning roles at the BBC including Controller BBC Comedy Commissioning and Controller CBBC. She joined the corporation in 2005 from the independent production sector.
“I am very proud of the programming we have brought to life for millions of viewers during my 10 years at Zodiak Kids and will miss the incredible talent on and off screen that I have worked with during this time. However, I am thrilled the remit is being placed in Cheryl’s hands. Having worked together at the BBC and then on many of our series at Zodiak Kids I know she will be brilliant and am looking forward to working together as she comes on board,” Steven Andrew said.
“Zodiak Kids and Family has a stellar reputation for producing inventive stories for children of all ages and I’m delighted to be joining a team who feel as strongly as I do about inspiring young audiences. I’m honoured to be picking up the reins from Steven - he’s been responsible for an exceptional canon of work and has always demonstrated enviable flair for growing popular titles and nurturing new talent,” Cheryl Taylor added.