Paris – BBC Controller of Drama, Ben Stephenson, will take centre stage at MIPTV to throw light on the behind-the-scenes magic at the heart of the commissioner/producer creative alliance, during a MIPTV Creative Talk on April 9. Stephenson will also present the opening speech at MIPTV’s 2nd annual Drama Co-Production Summit on April 8. MIPTV 2013 is organised by Reed MIDEM and will take place in Cannes, April 8-11.

Appointed Controller of Drama Commissioning in September 2008 and in charge of the BBC’s drama output, Stephenson has also launched BBC One’s returning series The Syndicate, The Paradise, Prisoners Wives and Last Tango in Halifax. Sherlock and Luther, both originally commissioned by Stephenson, will also return in 2013.

In addition, he is responsible for the re-emergence of drama on BBC Two, with a range of original programmes such as The Shadow Line, United, Eric and Ernie, The Crimson Petal and the White, Murder, and Parade’s End. Forthcoming dramas include Dancing on the Edge, The Fall, Frankie, Mayday, Mary and Martha, Peaky Blinders, Top of the Lake, The Village and The White Queen.