Directors UK is governed by an elected Board of Directors drawn from its membership, and a number of Independent Non-Executive Directors. The current Board is comprised of:
- Abigail Dankwa
- Avril Evans
- Lottie Gammon
- James Hawes — Directors UK Vice-Chair
- Zoe Hines — Directors UK Vice-Chair
- Alexander Jacob
- Karen Kelly — Directors UK Chair
- Marion Milne — Nations and Regions Representative
- Carolyn Saunders — Associate Member Representative
- Deborah Stones — Independent Non-Executive Director
- Peter Strachan — Nations and Regions Representative
- Delyth Thomas
- Tom Toumazis MBE — Independent Non-Executive Director
- Susanna White
Also serving on the Board are:
Abigail Dankwa
Abigail is a Multi Camera and Fixed Rig TV Director with experience directing Entertainment, Panel, Quiz, Live/OB and Fixed Rig shows. She is a member of BAFTA, BECTU and the RTS. She has been recognised by BAFTA Breakthrough, Edinburgh TV Festival’s One to Watch and Broadcast Magazine’s Hot Shot.
Avril Evans
Avril is a multi-award-winning writer/director of film, TV and commercials who gravitates towards audacious, global stories with an unflinching point of view and a dose of Afro Noir.
Her work has screened at London, and Berlinale International Film Festivals and she has been recognised by Edinburgh TV Festival’s Ones to Watch, and Broadcast’s Hot Shots. Avril has contributed to the BAFTA steering group for inclusion and is a Rare with Google Fellow.
Lottie Gammon
Lottie is an experienced long-form documentary filmmaker. She is a member of We Are Doc Women and her work has been awarded an RTS Journalism award and Foreign Press Association Award. She has received nominations an RTS Craft Award and an Emmy.
James Hawes
Directors UK Vice-Chair
James is returning to the Directors UK Board, which he first joined as part of the group that oversaw the original UK rights agreement. James has directed dramas like The Bill and Holby City, alongside historical and investigative documentaries. He now works internationally, directing for Netflix, HBO Max, Channel 4, BBC, Discovery Networks, Showtime and Apple TV+.
Zoe Hines
Directors UK Vice-Chair
Zoe is a factual Series Producer and award-winning Shooting PD. Her work has been recognised by BAFTA, The Grierson Awards and the Royal Television Society. She is a long-standing administrator of the grassroots Directors’ collective Viva La PD.
Alexander Jacob
Alexander is an established director currently working in continuing and children’s drama. His credits include The Dumping Ground, Casualty, 4 O’Clock Club and Hollyoaks.
Karen Kelly
Directors UK Chair
Karen is an award-winning freelance director. She has directed and series produced over 50 hours of network television across factual, long form obs docs series, specialist factual films and high-end drama docs as well as feature documentaries. Her work has been recognised by the Royal Television Society.
Marion Milne
Nations and Regions Representative
Marion directs premium international documentaries. Marion lives in Bath, and is one of the two regional representatives on the board. She is a member of BAFTA, and her was the recipient of the NY World Gold Medal for Biography. Her work has been nominated for an Emmy, the Broadcast Awards, the AIB, and for the Royal Television Society.
Carolyn Saunders
Associate Member Representative
Deborah Stones
Independent Non-Executive Director
Deborah has a background as a solicitor, specialising in copyright and entertainment law. She has over 30 years of experience working in copyright and collective management, acting for collecting societies in the music, visual arts, publishing and audio-visual industries. Throughout her career she has been heavily involved in many significant regulatory and legislative developments affecting copyright and the creative industries in Europe and the UK.
Peter Strachan
Nations and Regions Representative
Delyth Thomas
Delyth is a three times Bafta nominated director with credits ranging from dark brooding crime, high-end period drama, to iconic family gems. Her credits include Then You Run, Victoria, The Story of Tracy Beaker and more. She also works as a voice director on video games. She is a member of Bafta.
Tom Toumazis MBE
Independent Non-Executive Director
Tom has a portfolio of directorships focused in technology, media and the arts.
He’s a founder investor and Chair of four start-ups from a variety of industries from data analytics, to online art retail, from mobile games to the biggest Expo in the UK for the Hemp, CBD and Medicinal Cannabis. He’s also Non-Executive Director of the Performing Rights Society for Music.
Tom has held senior roles in the film and entertainment world at ITV, The Walt Disney Company, Eurosport, Endemol Shine and Yahoo.
Susanna White
Also serving on the Board are:
Jo Bromley
Chief Financial Officer
Jo joined Directors UK in April 2023, bringing with her a wealth of experience from the worlds of both media and education, having held senior roles in media organisations, including UKTV, NBC Universal, Channel 4 and The Telegraph. Her experience spans Finance, HR, IT and Governance, all of which is put to good use in her role at Directors UK. Jo holds a BA in Psychology and is a qualified member of the Chartered Insitute of Management Accountants.
Andy Harrower
Directors UK CEO
Andy is a highly experienced and well-regarded leader in the field of rights management and has been championing the rights of creators for over 30 years. He joined Directors UK in May 2020 after a long career at PRS for Music. At Directors UK, his focus is growing the royalties we collect for our members, as well as trying to address the many challenges that directors face in their working lives. He is proud to be representing TV and film directors and working to create a world in which their talent and creativity is recognised, respected and properly valued.