Darren Throop boss of Peppa Pig TV firm, who grew up on a farm, set to rake in £7.6m bonus
Chief of Entertainment One Darren Throop is in-line to receive the award - despite a shareholder revolt
THE boss of the firm behind children's smash-hit Peppa Pig could be set for a bonus worth £7.6million - EVEN if the company doesn't perform.
But how did former farm boy Darren Throop manage to come to run Entertainment One and be handed the eye-watering package?
The boss of one of biggest production companies in the world, Darren Throop
After selling cars and running a tanning salon, he first moved into the entertainment industry when he founded Urban Sound Exchange, a chain on independent music stores.
Seven years later it was bought by ROW Entertainment, which later turned into TV production giant Entertainment One.
In 2003 he became its president - though the company wasn't in a great place.
"As you get a bit bigger and a bit wiser and bring others to the table that have different experiences and perspectives then you get a little bit more strategic about things.
"The last ten years has been very thought out, methodical in its approach, but there was no master plan, I can tell you that."
Since then the firm has gone from strength to strength - with kids' appetite for Peppa Pig showing no signs of slowing down across the world.
Earlier this year it announced it would be making another 117 episodes of Peppa Pig which will start being broadcast in Spring 2019.
He said at the time of the announcement: "Peppa Pig's global appeal continues apace as we bring new content to audiences across the world."
Entertainment One has since gone from strength to strength.
It now distributes shows like zombie-apocalypse hit The Walking Dead and makes programmes including Designated Survior, Cardinal and more.
Its film arm is set to release a number of films before the end of the year, including Paddington 2, A Bad Mom's Christmas and the Steven Spielberg directed The Post.
But not everyone is happy with his pay deal - bosses faced a shareholders revolt at its AGM this with around half voting against his bumper package.
Despite protests against the bumper pay out, Throop is set to pocked the full 7.6 million as a share incentive and wage increase.
But whichever way you slice the bonus, it's certainly a long, long way from life on the farm.
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