By Kevin Young
Entertainment reporter, BBC News |
  Jamie Oliver was widely praised for his TV show about healthy school dinners |
Chef Jamie Oliver and Doctor Who guru Russell T Davies are among the media personalities who will be interviewed at this year's Edinburgh TV Festival. Davies will discuss his success in a "masterclass", while Oliver will give a cookery demonstration and be questioned about his healthy food campaigns. Heroes creator Tim Kring and fashion expert Gok Wan will also attend the industry event. About 2,000 people are expected at the festival, from 22 to 24 August. Kring, whose futuristic drama is currently into its second series on BBC Two in the UK, said he felt it was "of the utmost importance" to attend the conference "because of Heroes' large international following".  Gok Wan will scrutinise the fashion of TV executives |
He will be interviewed on stage at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre, while another "masterclass" will focus on Ross Kemp, the former EastEnders actor whose documentary on gangs won a Bafta TV Award a year ago. The Thick of It producer Armando Iannucci has been lined up to give the Alternative MacTaggart Lecture, a regular feature of the festival in which media figures give their views on the future of broadcasting. It is intended to be a counterpoint to the keynote MacTaggart Lecture, which will be delivered by Peter Fincham, who has this week started as ITV's director of television. He quit his job as controller of BBC One after the furore over a trailer for a documentary that purported to show The Queen storming out of a photo shoot. Festival highlights Gok Wan will scrutinise the fashion of TV executives in a special edition of his Channel 4 show How to Look Good Naked, which will only be seen at the festival. And there will be a version of BBC Two business series Dragon's Den, in which presenter Evan Davis will oversee the attempts of producers to pitch programming ideas to influential TV managers. The most persuasive pitchers will receive money to develop their ideas into proper shows. A lecture will also be given by Clay Shirky, the US web commentator and writer, on how the media, culture and society are changing in the 21st Century. Events at the festival, which is only open to registered delegates, will be covered by the BBC News website in August.
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