STV ‘coup mastermind’ steps down from board

The activist investor who engineered a boardroom coup at broadcaster STV five years ago has stood down from the board.

Matthew Peacock, founder of Hanover Partners, joined the board in 2007 as a non-executive director after taking a significant stake in the company in a bid to turn round its fortunes.

The firm had sold its remaining holding in STV in June.

STV chairman Richard Findlay paid tribute to Peacock’s “significant contribution to the turnaround” of the company during his time on the board.

Peacock will be replaced in March by Genevieve Shore, the director of digital strategy at FT publisher Pearson.

Shore, who is also chief information officer at the media and education group and a former group sales director at publisher Penguin, said: “The company has a clear strategy to connect with consumers via new digital services and deliver innovative and engaging content at the heart of this offering.”

Findlay said Shore’s expertise in “developing new digital products and services will be invaluable as we progress the next phase of our growth strategy”.

Another Hanover executive, Vasa Babic, who also joined as a non-executive director at the broadcaster in 2007, still remains on the board.

Shares in STV closed down 0.12p at 98.12p yesterday, valuing the company at £38m.