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ITV Studios has unveiled a significant leadership reshuffle at its Wales-based production label Boom, reinforcing the company’s ambitions across scripted, factual and entertainment programming in both the UK and international markets.The most notable appointment sees Siân O’Callaghan joining Boom as Managing Director following a long career at BBC Studios, where she served as Director of Production for Drama, Comedy and Fiction. During her tenure, she oversaw some of the BBC’s most established and commercially successful titles, including EastEnders, Silent Witness, Father Brown, Casualty, Death Valley and the Welsh-language soap Pobol y Cwm. O’Callaghan brings more than three decades of experience spanning drama, factual, current affairs and operational management. At Boom, she will oversee both the creative and commercial strategy of the company, with a focus on strengthening its bilingual Welsh and English-language production slate while expanding its international reach. She replaces Nia Thomas, who stepped down earlier this year after spending 26 years with the company, including 14 years as Managing Director.

Alongside O’Callaghan, Boom has created a new senior role for BAFTA-winning executive producer Louise Allen, who joins as Creative Director. Allen is widely recognised for her work on globally successful unscripted franchises including Love Island, The Only Way Is Essex, I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! and Gogglebox. More recently, she executive produced major streaming hits such as Too Hot to Handle, Battle Camp and Squid Game: The Challenge, which won the BAFTA for Best Reality Series.Allen’s arrival signals Boom’s intention to significantly increase its focus on globally scalable unscripted formats for streamers and international broadcasters. In a statement, Allen said the company’s “creative foundations are exceptional” and highlighted her ambition to develop “bold, globally ambitious unscripted formats.”

The restructuring also includes the promotion of Rachel Evans to Creative Director. Previously Boom’s Director of Programmes and interim MD, Evans has played a key role in expanding the company’s scripted and unscripted output. Her credits include the BBC drama Men Up, the S4C thriller 35 Diwrnod (35 Days) and entertainment productions such as Y Llais, the Welsh adaptation of The Voice.In her new position, Evans will oversee Boom’s Welsh-language and scripted strategy, supervising a broad slate that includes factual programming, children’s content, entertainment and drama for broadcaster S4C. She will also work closely with Allen to broaden Boom’s UK and international footprint.

Tim Carter, Managing Director of ITV Studios UK Unscripted, described the trio as a “game-changing combination,” emphasising the balance between O’Callaghan’s expertise in large-scale drama production, Allen’s track record in global entertainment hits and Evans’ deep understanding of Welsh-language and scripted content.

Founded in Wales, Boom has built a strong reputation for producing bilingual programming across multiple genres. Its recent credits include Alan Carr’s Adventures with Agatha Christie for Channel 4, Skin A&E for 5STAR, Our Little Farm on the Prairie for Channel 5 and two seasons of Y Llais for S4C.