Charles Allen (businessman)
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The Right Honourable The Lord Allen of Kensington CBE |
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|---|---|
| Born |
4 January 1957 (age 60) Lanarkshire, Scotland |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Businessman and Broadcaster |
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Title |
CEO of Granada Group (1996–2000) Non-exec. director of Tesco plc (1999–2010) Exec. chairman of Granada Media plc (2000–04) CEO of ITV plc (2004–07) Chairman of Global Radio (2007–present) Exec. chairman of EMI (2008–10) Chairman of Executive Board of the Labour Party (March 2012-2015) Chairman of British Red Cross (2013–2014) Chairman of ISS A/S (2013–present) |
Charles Lamb Allen, Baron Allen of Kensington, CBE (born 4 January 1957) is a British businessman and broadcaster who is the Chairman of Global Radio, 2 Sisters Food Group, ISS and Advisory Chairman at Moelis & Company. Lord Allen was Chief Executive of Granada Group from 1996 to 2000, Executive Chairman of Granada Media plc from 2000 to 2004, Chief Executive of ITV plc from its formation in 2004 until 2007, and Chairman of the music company EMI. He was Chairman of Endemol, a non Executive Director of Tesco plc and Virgin Media. In March 2012, he was appointed by Ed Miliband, the leader of the Labour Party, to the position of Chairman of the Executive Board of the party. He has been Chairman of the British Red Cross.
Allen was educated at Bellshill Academy, a state school in the town of Bellshill in North Lanarkshire in central Scotland. He did not attend university, and says of his life, "It’s been an amazing journey considering I left school at 17 with no job to go to".
Allen joined Granada plc in 1991, originally as CEO of Granada Television, before becoming Group Chief Executive in 1996. During his time at Granada, he was instrumental in the takeover of Forte Group for £3.9 billion in 1996, and the takeovers of LWT and Yorkshire-Tyne Tees Television in 1994 and 1999 respectively. In 2001 Granada Group merged with Compass to form Granada Compass, then demerged into Granada Media plc and Compass Group. He remained with Granada when the two companies demerged, and became Executive Chairman of Granada plc in 2001. When Granada merged with Carlton Communications in 2004 to form ITV plc, Allen became the new company's Chief Executive.
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