Netflx has signed BBC exec Syeda Irtizaali to head its UK and Ireland unscripted slate.
As BBC interim scripted director since March this year, Irtizaali oversaw entertainment hits The Traitors and Destination X and also headed up other genres previously overseen by Charlotte Moore: documentaries, fact ent, specialist factual, arts and daytime, as well as the Storyville strand.
She was previously BBC editor of unscripted and helped secure the co-production deal with NBC Universal for both The Traitors and Destination X.
Irtizaali joined the BBC in 2020 as an entertainment commissioner, a role she previously held for 10 years at Channel 4, where she ordered The Last Leg, Mo Gilligan's Lateish Show, Million Pound Drop and Big Fat Quiz of the Year.
She began her career at BBC News and has worked for indies including Monkey, Planet 24, Diverse, At It, and Brighter.
At Netflix, Irtizaali succeeds Ben Kelly as director of unscripted series and reports into vice president of content Anne Mensah.
The streamer’s portfolio of unscripted shows from the UK and Ireland includes Squid Game: the Challenge (Studio Lambert/The Garden), Sunderland ’Til I Die (Fulwell 73), At Home with the Furys (Optomen) and Love is Blind UK (CPL Productions).
The BBC is now hunting for Irtizaali’s successor.
