Biography
Born and brought up in Northern Ireland, Steve graduated from Manchester University before ing the BBC in a variety of roles; progressing from Youth and Entertainment Features to becoming a producer/director on BBC flagship current affairs programmes Newsnight, Spotlight and Panorama.
He returned to Ireland in 1997 and later established the independent production company, Mint Productions, which supplied the major broadcasters in the UK and Ireland.
His awards as a programme-maker include those from the Royal Television Society and the Irish Film and Television Academy.
In February 2009, Steve was appointed as Director of Programmes, RTÉ Television, with responsibility for commissioning in-house and independently made content on RTÉ One and Two. He re-ed the BBC in 2013 as Head of BBC Northern Ireland Productions.
Steve ed BBC Scotland as Head of Multiplatform Commissioning in 2017, where his responsibilities included launching a dedicated channel for Scotland. Amongst his commissioning credits were the award-winning drama Guilt, landmark documentaries Yes No: Inside The Indyref and Murder Trial and popular documentaries series Inside Central Station. He expanded BBC Scotland’s Sport portfolio with live coverage of the SPFL Championship and the return of top flight football highlights to Saturday nights.
In October 2020 Steve was appointed Director of BBC Scotland.
A former vice-president of the European Broadcasting Union’s Television Committee and chair of RTS Northern Ireland, he is married to broadcaster Miriam O’Callaghan.
Annual remuneration (as at July 2024)
Expenses and central bookings
Expenses are costs incurred by BBC staff on behalf of the BBC and claimed through the BBC's expenses system.
Central bookings are costs incurred on behalf of the BBC and booked through the BBC's central bookings system. Both expenses and central bookings are published every three months.
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Gifts and Hospitality
Gifts and hospitality may only be accepted in line with BBC policy. Information about gifts and hospitality is published every three months.
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Declaration of personal interests
Staff must make a declaration of their personal and business interests, including any hips or directorships of public or industry bodies, and any shareholdings, as well as any interests that their immediate families may also have.
A summary is published where there is something to declare and where there is nothing to declare. Occasionally an individual will have something to declare but due to the personal nature of the declaration we do not publish details as to do so would breach the General Data Protection Regulation.
This information is published annually, although if any amendments are made during the year an updated summary will be published if necessary as soon as it is available.
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