Yves Bigot to be named as TV5 chief

The French government has decided on former RTL programming director Yves Bigot as its preferred candidate to be head of international Francophone channel TV5 Monde, according to a report in financial daily Les Echos.

Bigot, who has also served as programming director at Belgian broadcaster RTBF, which holds an 11.1% share in TV5, and was co-creator, with Antoine de Caunes, of the show Rapido, was earlier identified by La Correspondance de la presse as the preferred candidate amongst the channel’s international stakeholders.

The post of TV5 chief became vacant after Marie-Christine Saragosse was named as the new chief of the Audiovisuel Extérieur de la France (AEF), the body that oversees France’s external media activities. Bigot’s appointment must be approved by TV5’s partners.