Just four months after joining BBC Studios Kids & Family, Gráinne McNamara has been promoted to VP of development for live action and animation.

McNamara joined the company in November 2024 as an executive producer of development and live action—an area of expertise that she honed in her previous roles as head of live-action development at Disney EMEA (2014 to 2018) and VP of live-action development and production at 9 Story Media Group (2020 to 2024).

In her expanded remit at BBC Studios, McNamara is now charged with overseeing a development team that’s working across live action and animation. She tells Kidscreen that this structural amalgamation is part of a strategic change to adapt to the commissioning downturn in the kids & family content market. “We’ve had to really focus on a specific slate that answers and targets buyers’ needs, rather than a general slate.” 

The team is finding its footing in the live-action space, says McNamara, who points to the fact that BBC Studios Kids & Family is primarily known for its preschool brands and animated hits like Bluey. McNamara teases two big IPs that are in line to be formally announced in a few months. She says they’re both “heavy-hitter” concepts that will “set our tone for what we’re capable of in live action,” noting that one series is an original IP and the other based on an established brand.

McNamara says the team is also looking to build more of a presence in the six-plus animation market, with a number of “beautiful properties” that are expected to be announced over the next six months. 

In recent years, McNamara has served as an executive producer on CBBC projects including book-based live-actioner A Kind of Spark and last year’s family feature The Primrose Railway Children, in addition to producing King Bert’s historical drama series Malory Towers.