Michael Carrington, the CEO who first supported Breaking World Kids bluishHe retires after a long career.
The former BBC Kids boss held a variety of senior roles throughout the period from the early 1990s to the 1920s, and had a reputation as one of the most high-profile people in the industry, but was best known for supporting the development of… bluish While leading ABC TV's children's and education division in Australia.
He announced his retirement on LinkedIn, saying: “The world of television has given me more than I could have ever imagined.”
Having begun his career in Australia at Network Ten, he joined CBBC as a producer in 1993 before being moved to lead Lego's television and new media division just before the millennium. He returned to the Beeb after four years in an acquisitions role at BBC Children's and rose to become CBeebies' first creative director and controller in 2007. There he commissioned the likes of In the night garden and Charlie and LolaBoth still play daily on the Preschool Network.
In 2010, he moved to Turner to lead Cartoon Networks EMEA as Chief Content Officer, where he produced shows such as The Amazing World of GumballHe founded Cartoon Network Arabic Studios. Then join Thomas and friends The owner is Hit Entertainment, which was acquired by Mattel in 2012, and later became CEO of Zodiak Kids Studios, which is now part of Banijay.
But when he returned to Australia in 2016, his biggest break came. He was named ABC's chief children's content anchor and saw an early-stage pilot for bluish In an artificial stadium and supported it with development funds. With BBC Studios, the commercial arm of his former employer the BBC, he also commissioned a full season of an animated series about the caring and funny family of blue heelers.
bluish It was later acquired by Disney+ internationally and in the US, where it has spent the past 112 weeks on Nielsen's most streamed charts.
ABC later promoted him to head of programming, giving him control of all television channels and the ABC iView streaming device. During this period he commissioned Proverbs News readeralso oversaw and led other functions of the broadcaster during the difficult early days of the Covid-19 pandemic. He left in 2023 and set up an independent production company, which has now closed with his retirement.
“The world of television has given me more than I could have ever imagined,” Carrington said. “I've had the privilege of working with incredibly talented people and helping create content that has brought joy, education, and wonder to countless families. When I step away, I feel proud knowing that the values of creativity, diversity, and inclusion that have guided me will continue to inspire the next generation of storytellers. I'm excited to see What's next for the industry and grateful for all the moments we've shared.
