Adam Adler joins Channel 4’s in-house production business as Creative Director

Channel 4 has appointed Adam Adler, BAFTA-winning creative showrunner and executive producer of The Cube and upcoming Channel 4 reality series Derren Brown: Incognito, as Creative Director of Channel 4’s in-house production business, reporting to Sarah Dillistone.

Adler – who is Dillistone’s first appointment since joining in February to lead Channel 4’s in-house production business – launched his career at Endemol, co-creating reality hits including Bar Wars and The Games. He went on to hold senior creative roles at Granada, Objective and Potato as well as running his own label Gameface. He also served as Commissioning Editor for entertainment at Channel 4, where he oversaw shows including Beauty & the Geek, Derren Brown: The Heist, Death Wish: Live and 8 out of 10 Cats.

Channel 4’s move to build IP will unlock new revenue streams and enable it to reinvest sustainably in the UK’s creative industry, following the removal of the publisher-broadcaster restriction under the Media Act 2024. A clear operational firewall separates the new ideas studio from Channel 4 commissioning, with Sarah Dillistone reporting to Priya Dogra, Chief Executive of Channel 4.

Sarah Dillistone said: “I’m incredibly lucky Adam chose to join us, he is an unrivalled creative force and one of the most prolific format creators around spanning gameshow, reality and entertainment. Adam’s experience originating ambitious and unpredictable formats from The Cube to Channel 4’s brand new reality series Incognito, coupled with my own background originating and showrunning reality, social experiments and relationship shows, makes for an exciting mix.”

Adam Adler, Creative Director said: “I’m really excited to be joining Dilly at the start of this new venture. Channel 4 has always had attitude and originality, and I’d love us to bottle some of that up and take it out into the world. The ambition is to create exciting ideas with that same spirit, for TV and beyond.”

Sarah Dillistone is a BAFTA-winning executive producer with a track record of delivering ambitious, internationally successful formats including Perfect Match, The Ultimatum and Made in Chelsea. She has executive produced hit series for Fox, Hulu, Peacock and Netflix, including The Ultimatum: Queer Love and the Paris & Nicole reunion show. Earlier in her career, she emerged as a defining force in British structured reality at Lime Pictures and Monkey Kingdom (NBCUniversal), shaping era-making shows including The Only Way Is Essex.