The choice of Pickard is surprising on two counts: ITV was successful in keeping his candidacy a secret and from an advertiser point of view no one has really heard of him. "Nigel who?" was a typical reaction from agencies and advertisers, some of whom had been hoping for a big name to replace David Liddiment, such as BBC One controller Lorraine Heggessey.
But the response from the programming community has been overwhelmingly positive. "It's a clever, imaginative appointment," says Peter Bazalgette, creative director of Endemol UK, creator of Big Brother. "In all the speculated lists of candidates, his name wasn't there."
In the same way that some people resemble their pets, Pickard, 50, personifies his career path, which until last week has been squarely rooted in children's programming. He has been controller of children's and youth programming at ITV and, most recently, controller of CBBC. First impressions suggest someone warm and cuddly, not dissimilar from one of the Fimbles characters he launched onto kids' channel Cbeebies.
But Bazalgette maintains there is more to Pickard than meets the eye.
"He comes across as genial and scruffy, but don't be taken in by it. He's extremely acute."
ITV managing director Mick Desmond, who says Pickard was at the top of ITV's wish-list to replace Liddiment, adds: "He's very commercially astute, he will bring a different business acumen to the role." Carlton sales chief executive Martin Bowley recalls: "He was the first person in ITV prepared to get involved with advertisers. We went to the New York Toy Fair and he rolled up his sleeves and flogged the CiTV schedule to the UK toy advertisers out there."
Despite being immersed in a world of magical valleys and tinkling trees, Pickard is not afraid to take tough decisions. Earlier this year he spearheaded the launches of the BBC's controversial kids' digital channels Cbeebies and CBBC.
In July he took the step of axing presenter Dani Behr from The Saturday Show on BBC One after ratings for the show failed to live up to expectations.
Advertisers can also take comfort from the fact that at ITV he was responsible for overturning BBC One's dominance of kids' Saturday morning viewing for the first time in 12 years by commissioning SM:TV and CD:UK, both fronted by Ant and Dec.
Nevertheless there have been some concerns that Pickard's concentration in children's programming may mean he lacks experience in key areas of the ITV schedule. Procter & Gamble associate director of UK media Bernard Balderston asks: "He's clearly an experienced programme maker, but can he extend the breadth of his vision beyond his most recent experience?"
As ITV controller of entertainment Claudia Rosencrantz puts it, a children's schedule is a "microcosm" of the adult schedule stretching across entertainment, factual and drama strands. In addition, as Desmond says, Pickard has been hired, among other things, for his leadership qualities. At ITV his job will be to manage a highly skilled team, including programme commissioners such as Rosencrantz, controller of drama Nick Elliot and scheduling guru David Bergg. He will also oversee programming on ITV2. "It's like football. Alex Ferguson doesn't need to be a great crosser or a goal scorer because he's got Beckham and Giggs, but he does need to be a very good manager," says Desmond.
The temptation is to write that Pickard faces a huge challenge at ITV; but Liddiment and his team have in fact commissioned most of the 2003 schedule. Buoyed by a £823m programming budget, a renewed focus on the core ITV1 channel by the shareholders and increased stability of the new Barb panel, agencies expect ITV's audiences to improve in 2003. Cynics say if they don't, Pickard can blame Liddiment, but if they do, he can take the credit. The real test for Pickard will come in commissioning the schedule for 2004.
MediaVest managing director Chris Locke says Pickard's priority should be to find a successor to Who Wants to be a Millionaire, which he describes as "tired", and to build on ITV's reputation for drama, with more hits such as Cold Feet. He also believes Pickard has the chance to seize the initiative by tackling Saturday and Sunday night schedules.
Short term, the feeling at the network centre seems to be one of relief that the all-important question of who will replace Liddiment has finally been resolved. Rosencrantz says: "He's a fantastic person to work with. He's a calm, quietly determined person who understands and loves good programmes."
ITV marketing and commercial director Jim Hytner adds: "There is a real buzz about ITV at present, a growing confidence that we're coming back." Advertisers and agencies will be hoping that with Pickard's arrival, ITV's comeback materialises.
BIOGRAPHY
1993-1997: Director of programmes to general manager, The Family Channel
1997-1998: General manager, Challenge TV, Flextech Television
1998-1999: Controller of children's and youth programmes, ITV
1999-2002: Controller, CBBC, BBC
October 2002: Director of programmes, ITV
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